Justice Jackson says attacks on judiciary are designed to undermine the rule of law

 Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson warned that the Trump administration’s attacks on the judiciary are “not isolated incidents,” but are designed to intimate the judiciary and “impact more than just the individual judges who are being targeted,” reported Jurist. Justice Jackson further warned that the threats and harassment of the judiciary are an attack on US democracy and “ultimately risk undermining our Constitution and the rule of law.”

Jackson added:

I am taking this point of personal privilege to reaffirm the significance of judicial independence and to denounce attacks on judges based on their rulings. A society in which judges are routinely made to fear for their own safety or their own livelihood due to their decisions is one that has substantially departed from the norms of behavior that govern in a democratic system. Attacks on judicial independence are how countries that are not free, not fair, and not rule-of-law-oriented operate.

Quoting former Justice Stephen Breyer, Jackson stated that judicial independence “is a matter of custom, habit, and institutional expectation,” which requires support not just from the judiciary itself, but from the community in which judges serve. Jackson also recalled that it is “easier to dismantle judicial independence than to attain it.”

Jackson then offered two ideas to ensure that judicial independence is preserved to protect the Constitution and the US public. First, Jackson recommended that judges take a more active role in educating citizens about what the judiciary does, and the importance of the role of judges in defending the Constitution and the rule of law. Toward this end, Jackson reminded that judges throughout the First Circuit are already engaged in civic education and community outreach work. Jackson credited Breyer again for his remarks on civic education and noted the useful insights given by Breyer on what can be said to help the citizenry “understand the connection between judicial independence and their own wellbeing.”

Jackson’s second suggestion is simply that judges “look inward and focus on supporting one another during these challenging times…and continually reminding ourselves of the core values that guide us in our daily work.” Acknowledging the stress that comes along with deciding a difficult case “in the spotlight and under pressure,” Jackson asked judges to look for strength in their historical role models who have faced similar challenges and navigated them with “duty, honor, and a clarity of conscience.” Jackson reminded everyone of the civil rights and Brown v Board of Education era, when lower federal court judges Frank Johnson and Skelly Wright—facing threats, public insults, and private violence in their communities—joined others in striking down bus-segregation and school-segregation and continued to issue integration orders. Jackson also spoke of lower federal court Judge John Sirica, who presided over cases related to the Watergate scandal during the Nixon Administration and who disregarded the political ramifications of his ruling, followed the facts and the law, and ruled against the very party who appointed him to the bench.

Jackson asked judges to think of these and other courageous role models in their own lives to draw inspiration and encouragement to stay on course and do the right thing for the good of the country.

The Trump administration has been noted from the very inception of his second term of consistently defying court orders and proceeding to carry on business as usual. Last month, federal judge John McConnell Jr. accused the Trump administration of defying his order requiring the federal government to release billions of dollars in federal grants after Trump’s attempt to freeze federal aid funding. Earlier this month, federal judge James Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to explain the deportation of more than 200 alleged Venezuelan gang members under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 despite his previous order not to do so.

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had already made note of these actions of defiance and reminded the Trump administration to reciprocate judicial respect for the executive with its own respect for the courts. The Trump administration’s attacks on judges have also prompted Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to speak out against the president in March.

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