A federal judge invoked his wife in issuing another scathing ruling against President Trump’s second-term agenda Tuesday, this time concerning efforts to deport students who participated in pro-Palestinian advocacy.
“He seems to be winning. He ignores everything and keeps bullying ahead,” U.S. District Judge William Young’s wife said.
The judge wrote that he doesn’t discuss pending cases with his wife, and she made the comment in a different context. Still, Young over several pages detailed why he agreed, saying the quote “perfectly captures” Trump’s public persona.
“The Constitution, our civil laws, regulations, mores, customs, practices, courtesies — all of it; the President simply ignores it all when he takes it into his head to act,” Young wrote.
“A broad swath of our people find this refreshing in what they may feel is an over regulated society. After all, lawyers seem to have a penchant for telling you what you can’t do. President Trump simply ignores them,” the judge continued.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
Young’s comments came as he ruled the Trump administration has targeted pro-Palestinian noncitizens for deportation primarily because of their protected political speech under the First Amendment. He’ll soon decide the proper remedy.
It’s not the first time the judge, an appointee of former President Reagan who recently celebrated 40 years on the bench, has been assigned a high-profile legal battle involving Trump.
In June, Young blocked the administration from cancelling hundreds of millions of dollars of health grants it said ran counter to its fight against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
When the Supreme Court lifted Young’s ruling last month, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh accused the judge of defying the high court’s recent rulings.
It led Young to apologize and retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer to conduct a rare media interview defending him, escalating tensions in the judiciary over the conservative-majority high court’s handling of emergency cases.
In Young’s 161-page ruling Tuesday, he stressed he wasn’t suggesting Trump is entirely lawless.
“He is not. As an experienced litigator he has learned that — at least on the civil side of our courts — neither our Constitution nor laws enforce themselves, and he can do most anything until an aggrieved person or entity will stand up and say him ‘Nay,’ i.e. take him to court,” Young wrote.
“Now that he is our duly elected President after a full and fair election, he not only enjoys broad immunity from any personal liability,” Young continued, citing the Supreme Court’s recent presidential immunity decision, “he is prepared to deploy all the resources of the nation against obstruction.”
“Daunting prospect, isn’t it?”
Young went on to take aim at law firms, universities and media conglomerates that have cut deals with the president, describing them as successful efforts by Trump to limit free speech.
“Let’s be honest. In our secret heart of hearts, many of us are tiny Trump wannabes. “After all, who does not feel the urge to stride about, ‘sticking it to The Man,’ wrecking institutions and careers simply because we find them irksome?” Young wrote in a footnote.
“Most of us, however, ascribe to Shakespeare’s famous adage: ‘O, it is excellent To have a giant’s strength; but it is tyrannous To use it like a giant.’”