The Constitution strikes back against Trump
Those 'jokers' who wrote the Constitution are really getting under Trump's skin in his second term. By one count, 180 judicial rulings have partly or wholly blocked Trump's executive orders and initiatives — many on constitutional grounds — which led to his attacks on 'radical left' judges and calls for their impeachment.
Trump cannot grasp that his fundamental problem is with the Constitution, not the judges. His executive orders are too much for some of his own judicial appointees, one of whom, Judge Timothy Reif joined — 'Et tu, Brute?' — in the unanimous opinion of the U.S. Court of International Trade that Trump lacked constitutional authority for his global tariffs.
The judicial setbacks have apparently pushed Trump into the 'eat your young' phase of his second term. After the tariff ruling, Trump blamed the conservative Federalist Society, attacking Leonard Leo, its long-time leader, as a 'sleazebag' for giving him 'bad advice' in his first term on judicial nominations.
Talk about petulance — the Federalist Society helped Trump put three justices on the Supreme Court who provided the key votes for two of the conservative movement's greatest victories: the end of affirmative action and the overruling of Roe v. Wade.
The Framers designed the Constitution as a bulwark against monarchy, yet within hours of swearing an oath to support and defend the Constitution, Trump began governing as a monarch. He issued more executive orders in his first 100 days than any president in American history.
Trump's executive orders were not written on parchment and sealed with crimson wax, but in their scope and cruelty they have the feel of royal decrees. His orders launched a worldwide tariff war, punished individuals and organizations for exercising their right of free speech and, by halting foreign food aid and HIV-prevention programs, according to one calculation, may have already caused the deaths of thousands of children in the developing world.
As if to underscore his monarchical impulses, Trump, after issuing an order to cancel congestion pricing in New York City, proclaimed on Truth Social, 'LONG LIVE THE KING!'
Thanks to the Framers, presidential executive orders are subject to judicial review because our system of checks and balances was designed so that each branch of government restrains the other two. Trump has so neutered the GOP Congress that James Madison's famous phrase in Federalist No. 51 describing checks and balances — 'Ambition must be made to counteract ambition' — needs to be displayed in 10-foot letters in both chambers to remind Republicans why they are there. But the judicial branch, including Trump's own appointees, is still loyal to the Constitution, and this infuriates Trump.
In fact, Trump has won significant rulings from what he calls a 'judicial tyranny.' At least preliminarily, federal courts have upheld his right to fire the heads of independent agencies with apparently limited exceptions, stripped (for now) hundreds of thousands of immigrants of temporary legal protections and paused the Court of International Trade's tariff ruling. But since Trump claims the right to 'run the country and the world,' he finds any judicial setback intolerable.
Trump's rage against judicial rulings putting the Constitution, and not him, first is the best evidence that the system designed by the Framers endures — at least so far.
Gregory J. Wallance was a federal prosecutor in the Carter and Reagan administrations and a member of the ABSCAM prosecution team, which convicted a U.S. senator and six representatives of bribery. He is the author of 'Into Siberia: George Kennan's Epic Journey Through the Brutal, Frozen Heart of Russia.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
14 minutes ago
- New York Post
South Park fires back explicit-laden message to DHS after department uses show to recruit ICE agents
South Park continued its war of words with the Trump administration on Tuesday. The official X account for the long-running adult cartoon show shared a vulgar message to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security after it used a screenshot of South Park's depiction of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to encourage recruitment through 'Wait, so we ARE relevant? #eatabagofd—-,' the account replied in a repost. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin responded to South Park's post in a statement shared with Fox News Digital. 'We want to thank South Park for drawing attention to ICE law enforcement recruitment: We are calling on patriotic Americans to help us remove murderers, gang members, pedophiles, and other violent criminals from our country. Benefits available to new ICE recruits include an up to $50,000 signing bonus, student loan forgiveness, and retirement benefits. Apply today at she said. 3 The South Park social media page fired back at DHS. X / @SouthPark South Park's post appeared to be a direct reference to a comment from White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers about the show's relevance following a controversial depiction of President Donald Trump in its season premiere on July 23. 'This show hasn't been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention,' Rogers said at the time. 'President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country's history – and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump's hot streak.' He also trashed liberals who love the show's attacks on Trump, adding, 'The Left's hypocrisy truly has no end – for years they have come after South Park for what they labeled as 'offense' content, but suddenly they are praising the show. Just like the creators of South Park, the Left has no authentic or original content, which is why their popularity continues to hit record lows.' 3 South Park has been at war with the Trump administration since its controversial season premiere last month. ©Comedy Central/Courtesy Everett Collection The show's season 27 premiere last month took aim at Trump, depicting him as having a sexual relationship with the devil and mocking the size of his genitalia. The episode also accused Trump of covering up details of the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking case. At one point during the premiere, Satan mentioned he heard that the president was on the Epstein list. 'The Epstein list? Are we still talking about that?,' Trump responded. 3 South Park's season premiere also accused Trump covering up details in the Epstein case. South Park Studios 'Well, are you on the list or not? It's weird that whenever it comes up, you just tell everyone to relax,' Satan continued. Trump replied, 'I'm not telling everyone to relax! Relax, guy!' South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone reached a $1.5 billion streaming deal with Paramount. They took shots at Paramount in early July after its season premiere was delayed by two weeks. Reps for South Park did not immediately reply to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
New York Post
14 minutes ago
- New York Post
Minors account for half of DC's carjacking arrests since 2023 — including pint-sized perps as young as 12: police data
More than half of the carjackers arrested in Washington, DC over the last two years were minors, the majority of whom were just 15 and 16 years old, according to a shocking review of police data in the nation's capital — which has come under the spotlight after President Trump's latest threat of a federal takeover. Since August 2023, DC police have collared 333 carjacking suspects and 56% of those busts were of kids under 18, figures from Metropolitan Police Department show. And 60% of the juveniles arrested for stealing cars were 15 or 16 — but ages ranged from 17 to as young as 12, according to police records. Advertisement 6 Former Department of Government Efficiency staffer Edward Coristine was beaten by a gang of 10 youths during an attempted carjacking in Washington, DC. Truth Social/@realDonaldTrump The disturbing statistics emerged as Trump has called on DC to start charging 14 year old's as adults to wrangle what he described as the 'totally out of control' crime in the city. Over the past two years, DC saw a total of 1,046 carjackings — vehicle thefts where the owner was present. And 72% of those crimes involved a gun. Advertisement Meanwhile, motor vehicle thefts — where the owner is not necessarily present — remained constant over the last two years — with 2,847 reported since Aug. 6 2024 and 2,844 during the same period the year before. In the latest would-be carjacking to rock DC, former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer Edward Coristine, 19, was badly beaten by a gang of 10 youths on Sunday morning. Two 15-year-olds — a male and a female — have since been arrested in the attack on Coristine, which occurred as he thwarted a carjacking attempt. 6 President Trump has threatened a federal takeover of DC over crime. Trump Truth Social Advertisement Trump cited the assault on Crostine in his Tuesday threat to bring the District of Columbia under federal control. 'Crime in Washington, D.C., is totally out of control. Local 'youths' and gang members, some only 14, 15, and 16-year-olds, are randomly attacking, mugging, maiming, and shooting innocent Citizens, at the same time knowing that they will be almost immediately released,' the president fumed on Truth Social. 'They are not afraid of Law Enforcement because they know nothing ever happens to them, but it's going to happen now!' he wrote. 'The law in D.C. must be changed to prosecute these 'minors' as adults, and lock them up for a long time, starting at age 14.' Trump added that if DC leaders didn't clean up the streets, he would have no choice but to 'take federal control of the City.' Advertisement 6 An Uber eats driver was killed in a carjacking from two tween girls in 2021. DC's left-leaning Attorney General Brian Schwalb has been famously relaxed about pursuing punishments for juvenile offenders — notably telling Fox 5 'kids are kids' in 2023 while explaining why he didn't believe in charging youths as adults. 'When you're talking about teenagers particular — their brains are developing, their minds are developing, and they're biologically prone to make mistakes,' Schwalb said at the time, explaining he believed in providing 'a chance of rehabilitation and going on to live lives of success and independence.' But some legal experts — echoing Trump's assessment of the situation — think Schwalb's stance might be exactly what is fueling DC's pint-sized perps. 'It's led to perverse incentives,' Heritage Foundation senior legal fellow and former Florida Assistant US Attorney Zack Smith told The Post. 6 Surveillance footage of the suspects who carjacked an FBI agent in 2023 in DC. Metropolitan Police Department 'Gangs are going out and recruiting very young juveniles to commit very violent crimes — things like shootings, carjackings, drug dealing, you name it — because they know under the D.C. attorney general's policy that even if these juveniles are caught for committing these crimes, they're likely only to receive a slap on the wrist,' he said. 'They may serve some period of time in a juvenile detention facility,' Smith added. 'The DC attorney general has essentially said that he is never, never going to prosecute a juvenile as an adult. No matter how old the juvenile is, no matter severe the crime that the juvenile offender may have committed.' Advertisement DC's youth crime has forced crackdowns from city leaders, with Mayor Muriel Bowser imposing a district-wide 11 p.m. curfew for everyone younger than 18 through the end of August. 6 Police responding to Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar getting carjacked in 2023. Fox News 6 A man pointing a gun out of a car window during an attempted carjacking that spanned from DC to Maryland in 2023. FOX 5 Washington DC Some neighborhoods even have 7 p.m. curfews for minors. Advertisement And in 2021, a special task force was assigned to address carjackings. The district has been wrestling with its crime in recent months and years. A 21-year-old congressional intern was killed by a stray bullet in July, and last year former Trump administration official Mike Gill was killed in a carjacking. Advertisement Then in 2023, Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar was carjacked at gunpoint outside his apartment while a month later an FBI agent was also carjacked. And the year before Schwalb took office, a 66-year-old Uber driver was killed when two teen girls — 13 and 15 — used a stun gun to carjack him. Both girls pleaded guilty to murder, but were only sent to juvenile facilities until they turned 21.
Buzz Feed
14 minutes ago
- Buzz Feed
The Right-Wing Movement Taking Over Public Schools
Across the United States, more parents are growing concerned as they witness a narrow religious ideology gaining influence over their children's public schools. While some argue that inclusive school curricula are threatening their religious freedom, many others are worried that one belief system is being imposed — dictating not only which books are available in classrooms but who gets to be represented in the school experience. The battle over books, especially those centering LGBTQ+ lives and diverse identities, has become a larger conflict about who controls the definition of American childhood and which values shape that narrative. 'The question emerging in the law right now is: Which parents have rights?' Jessica Mason Pieklo, Senior Vice President and Executive Editor of Rewire News Group, told HuffPost. 'We're seeing the conservative legal movement rally around a narrow vision of parental identity, control, and rights, one that doesn't reflect or include all families.' Education, once a shared public good, is increasingly becoming a battleground. And at the center of it is a Supreme Court case that could have far-reaching consequences: Mahmoud v. Taylor, which challenged the inclusion of LGBTQ+ books in a Maryland school district. In Mahmoud v. Taylor, the Supreme Court blocked a Maryland school district's LGBTQ+-inclusive curriculum, ruling it posed a 'very real threat' to the religious beliefs of some parents and supporting their right to opt their children out of such instruction. While the ruling doesn't impose a nationwide ban, it opens the door for local challenges that can limit educators' ability to provide diverse and inclusive education. For parents, this means the fight is about whose voices are heard in their communities. 'This isn't a book ban case,' explains Kelly Jensen, award-winning author and editor at Book Riot. 'It's a case about education and religious rights. None of the books are being banned or pulled from curricula. The real issue is the chilling effect.' Teachers, already working under immense pressure, may now think twice before including LGBTQ+ books in classrooms, even if those books are age-appropriate and affirming. 'The silent erasure of books, disappearing from shelves without formal challenges, is as insidious as outright bans,' Jensen warns. The ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor didn't change the law outright, but it signaled a cultural shift. One where certain religious beliefs are being elevated above others. The uproar over inclusive books in schools isn't a spontaneous, grassroots movement; it's a carefully coordinated effort. 'These book bans are astroturfed,' Pieklo said. 'They don't bubble up organically in a community because there's overwhelming concern that some inappropriate material has been placed there. These are part of a larger advocacy campaign.' Despite the noise, most families support inclusive curricula and occupy a middle ground, favoring opt-out options for personal or religious objections without imposing blanket bans that restrict access for everyone else. According to Pieklo, these efforts to flood schools with opt-outs are part of a broader conservative legal strategy aimed at undermining public education and controlling what students learn, particularly around race, gender, and history. 'This isn't about free speech or parental choice,' she said. 'It's about using the power of the law to try and direct outcomes.' And those outcomes are already changing. The 11th Circuit Court recently upheld a Florida law that prevents teachers from using students' preferred pronouns, mandating that they refer to students only by their sex assigned at birth. The court even ruled that misgendering students is protected speech. The religious justification being used in these cases isn't general, it's specific. 'The ruling essentially says religion is more important than your identity, and not just any religion, but specific types of religious interpretations,' Pieklo explains. In oral arguments for Mahmoud, conservative justices grossly distorted the nature of inclusive books. Justice Neil Gorsuch even described Pride Puppy, a board book about a child attending a Pride parade, as 'a bondage manual for kindergartners.' For many families, the cultural and legal battles over school curricula aren't abstract; they're deeply personal. 'My kids are older now,' Pieklo said, 'but it is very important for me and my family that our children have access to, not just exposure, but access to, books, information, resources, materials that explain not just the world around them but a world they may or may not feel 100% a part of. That helps them understand and navigate shifting understandings of identity.' That sense of wanting children to see and understand the world in its full complexity is shared by other parents across the country. Stephanie, a mother from North Carolina, echoes the importance of broad exposure: 'I'm a Christian and I want my kids to learn about the world as it is, not just through the lens of our faith.' Katie, a public school teacher and parent, said she's horrified by efforts to limit what kids can learn. 'I want my kids to learn as much about the world as they can, and I know I can't teach them everything. I trust that they can handle hearing viewpoints that differ from their own.' That trust in students' ability to think critically is matched by a strong belief in the power of representation. Mindi, a former teacher, reflects on how she would approach things if she were still in the classroom. 'I would have integrated books with secondary characters who identify as LGBTQ — not for 'indoctrination,' but to support my students with other identities. No book bans, ever.' For some, like Denise, a mother in Pennsylvania, the issue goes even deeper — into questions of visibility and belonging. 'I think it's disgusting that LGBTQ+ is being erased from our children's education,' she said. 'These are real people with real and valid ways to love. Taking it out of schools means my kids will always think it's taboo to love who they love.' "We All Lose Something" Underlying all of these perspectives is a shared concern about whose values are shaping what's taught, and whose voices are being silenced. 'When one religious ideology dictates what can be taught, read, or affirmed in public schools, we all lose something,' Pieklo notes. As public schools face funding cuts and increasing pressure, decisions like Mahmoud v. Taylor hand a louder platform to a narrow, often extreme religious agenda that can then shape what every child is allowed to learn, regardless of their own parents' wishes. Though these rulings claim to protect parental rights, some parents feel they frequently silence and disenfranchise those who want their children to see themselves reflected in their education and to understand the rich diversity of the world around them. Megan, a mother of children in public schools, puts it even more bluntly: 'Religion does not belong in schools. I do not enforce or force my beliefs on other people's children. And I'm incredibly not okay with one religion being forced on mine in a 'free' country.' The deeper issue, some parents argue, is the widening gap between well-funded private religious schools and under-resourced public ones. Jensen warns that unless communities push back, this divide will only deepen: 'This ruling might fuel the expansion of voucher programs, pushing public funds toward private religious education,' she said. 'It divides the 'haves' from the 'have-nots.' And it hurts public schools that already struggle for funding.' Megan echoes that concern, pointing to the strain on her children's school, where the teachers' union has had to fight for basics like smaller class sizes and fair pay. 'They deserve help — not funding cuts and more pressure on an already struggling system.'
