WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice filed a complaint Wednesday against federal judges in Minnesota over their remarks to the media about the pressure on their courthouse during Trump administration’s immigration enforcement surge .
The complaint escalates the department’s battle with the federal judiciary, which has halted administration priorities, dismissed high-profile prosecutions and accused government lawyers in some cases of failing to comply with court orders. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a part of DHS, “is not a law unto itself. Schiltz, who was nominated by Republican President George W. “That is exactly what I did. Yet some of the most critical and unfavorable court rulings have come from judges nominated by Trump and other Republican presidents.
The judge at the center of the story, Patrick Schiltz, accused the government in January of failing to comply with nearly 100 court orders.
He said in a ruling that U.S. Bush and served as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, told the newspaper that what happened in Minnesota’s federal court last winter “created a grave threat to the rule of law. In a statement Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Minnesota court said legal experts have confirmed that the judges were acting “well within the ethical rules that apply to federal judges” in speaking to the newspaper. Schiltz also said in a statement that his comments did not violate any ethical rules. “Indeed, in February of this year, the Committee on Codes of Conduct issued an advisory opinion to emphasize that federal judges” may speak or write “on core judiciary matters such as advocacy for the rule of law and judicial independence,'” Schiltz said in a statement. The Republican administration has railed against what it describes as “activist judges” who officials say are intent on thwarting Trump’s agenda.
“When we have a situation like we have now, where you have a judge, a couple of judges, just not only violating the canons in our view, but also showing bias in what they’re saying, we have no choice but to act to defend not only our prosecutors, but also DHS,” Blanche said.
