Judicial Checks and Balances

It is commonplace for conservatives to rail against so-called "activist judges" who overturn federal legislation and/or regulations, declaring them unconstitutional. Such rulings often have nationwide ramifications despite the limited scope of the original plaintiffs' grievances.

President Trump has been overruled by quite a few judges over the past four years, on issues including challenges to the 2020 presidential election results, immigration, whether he must release his tax returns, gas and oil drilling, and environmental policies.

There has been much talk about how the U.S. Supreme Court has assumed the upper hand in the checks and balances the Founders laid out between the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches of the federal government. But the federal district and circuit courts also have played a major role in affecting Uncle Sam's policies.

This has been a thorn in the side to the Trumpster and his supporters, but may end up being a saving grace once Joe Biden becomes President.

If, as expected, the Republicans maintain control of the U.S. Senate, the Biden administration (soon to be the Kamala Harris administration, IMO) will do as President Barack Obama did: Rely extensively on issuing executive and administrative orders to implement policy. This is because much of what Biden and Harris propose will be D.O.A. in a Republican Senate.

Remember: Trump has appointed 234 federal judges, including 174 to U.S. District Court positions, and 54 to the U.S. Court of Appeals. The injunctions issued by these courts have overturned Trump policies for several years; soon they will uphold his policies while also blocking destructive proposed policies by the Biden-Harris administration.

Joe Biden might fancy himself another Obama, with the "I've got a pen-and-a-phone" mindset. But he's likely to find a judicial branch that is not nearly as compliant as what The One enjoyed from 2009-2016.

One thing to keep an eye on, however, is an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case that may affect whether federal judges have the constitutional right to issue universal injunctions which apply beyond the geographic limits of the court's jurisdiction.

If the Democrats win both Georgia Senate seats, the 50-50 split means V.P. Harris will be the tiebreaker, and Biden will be able to achieve policy initiatives legislatively.... Unless federal courts overrule him.

Consistent judicial slapdowns of Biden administration legislation and regulations would definitely serve as an impetus for the Democrats to aggressively pack the Supreme Court and bolster their Senate ranks by four through the granting of statehood to Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. A 54-50 Senate margin for Democrats would mean a Democrat steamroller for Biden policies.

If we reach that point, I fear that long-term one-party rule in our nation's capital will permanently disenfranchise a wide swath of the nation -- perhaps 150 million people. This would portend a bleak, dark future in which free speech, the right to bear arms, and religious liberty would be crushed ruthlessly. I pray that it doesn't happen.

Comments

[T-Mo]

Been a few days since I've been on this site, even though I just posted last night. Just noticed your comment.
I agree with your observation. Good lawyers will often be able to win over judges whose ideologies might be on the opposite end of the spectrum. So the GOP cannot rest easy, figuring the Trump-appointed judges are a secure backstop.
We're definitely headed for stormy waters these next few weeks & months. Batten down the hatches.

[Ecclesiarch]

It's worth noting that the Democrat lawyers cracked the code to the Trump-appointed judges early on. While there is no doubt that judges write their opinions based on their ideologies, they're still jurists and interpret the Constitution and case law through the lense of that ideology. If a Democrat lawyer wanted to get a judge to rule in their favour, and against the Trump Administration, it was easy enough to construct originalist and textualist arguments for their positions. These judges aren't going to suddenly turn their obstructionism on a Biden Administration because that's how they roll, they're going to do it based on the cases and arguments upon which they're called to rule.