Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts doubled down on his response to critics calling for the impeachment of judges whose decisions they disagree with.
Roberts staunchly defended the independence of the judiciary in a Wednesday night fireside chat in Buffalo, New York, as the Trump administration continues to clash with numerous judges who do not rule in its favor.
“In our constitution, the judiciary is a coequal branch of government, separate from the others, with the authority to interpret the Constitution as law and strike down acts of Congress or acts of the president,” he said. “And that innovation doesn’t work if the judiciary is not independent.”
“Its job is to, obviously, decide cases, but in the course of that, check the excesses of Congress or of the executive, and that does require a degree of independence,” he added, drawing applause from the crowd.
In March, Roberts issued a rare statement after President Donald Trump called for the impeachment of a federal judge who blocked the administration’s efforts to deport immigrants to El Salvador.
“I’m just doing what the VOTERS wanted me to do,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post at the time, referring to U.S. District Judge James Boasberg. “This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!”
Roberts hit back just hours later.
“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” he said in a statement. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”
The statement triggered a MAGAworld meltdown, with one far-right pundit calling Roberts “totally out of line” for commenting on the dispute, and another describing the chief justice as a “Trump hater.”
Trump had a more reserved reaction, telling Fox News: “He didn’t mention my name in the statement. I just saw it quickly.”
But that doesn’t mean he’s moved on. In an Easter Sunday rant, Trump once again blasted “WEAK and INEFFECTIVE Judges” for blocking his mass deportation blitz.
Roberts reiterated his message on Wednesday night: “Impeachment is not how you register disagreement with decisions, that’s what we’re there for.”
