House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday said he “wholeheartedly” agrees with remarks from Trump administration officials, including Vice President J.D. Vance, that judges are overstepping their authority in dealing with legal challenges to the White House’s executive action.
Mr. Vance and other White House officials, including Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and efficiency czar Elon Musk, over the weekend questioned the judicial branch’s authority to check President Trump’s power.
The main focus of their ire was over a federal judge’s decision to halt Mr. Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency’s access to taxpayer data at the Treasury Department.
When asked if the administration should comply with judges’ orders, Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, said, “Of course, the branches have to respect our constitutional order, but there’s a lot, there’s a lot of game yet to be played; those will be appealed.”
He added, “In the interim, I will say I agree wholeheartedly with Vice President J.D. Vance, my friend, because he’s right what they’re doing in the executive branch. I’ve been asked so many times, ‘Aren’t you uncomfortable with this?’ No, I’m not.”
Mr. Vance posted on X, “Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.”
Mr. Musk demanded the impeachment of the judge who ordered DOGE’s access to end.
Mr. Johnson lauded DOGE’s efforts and contended that when Congress appropriates money, it builds in a “broad amount of discretion” and that ultimately the executive branch can dictate how that money is used.
Mr. Musk’s poking and prodding throughout the government has uncovered wasteful spending avenues of which lawmakers long were suspicious but didn’t have proof until now, said Mr. Johnson.
The speaker said much of Mr. Musk’s work would be reflected in an upcoming budget reconciliation package, brimming with spending cuts and sweeping tax, energy, and border security and immigration policies.
Mr. Johnson recognized that many of Mr. Trump’s other executive orders need to be turned into law to prevent temporary orders from lapsing.
“We’re working through that list to try to see how much of it we can do,” he said. “And so you’ll see that as a steady stream throughout the year, but a lot put in reconciliation, perhaps some of it in the appropriations process. We’ll see how that develops.”
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.