Brace yourselves, patriots—President Donald Trump just hit a judicial brick wall, with three stinging legal losses in a single day.
Newsweek reported that last Friday, the Trump administration was dealt a trio of courtroom defeats across Washington, D.C., and Massachusetts, spotlighting the judiciary as a formidable barrier to the America First agenda.
Let’s rewind to January, when President Trump, fresh from his second inauguration, signed a flurry of executive orders aimed at reshaping policy on everything from law firms to cultural issues.
Fast forward to Friday in Washington, D.C., where U.S. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell stood firm against the administration’s bid to sidestep her earlier ruling on the U.S. Institute of Peace.
Back in March, the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency took over the Institute, leading to the firing of its board—a move Judge Howell had already called "null and void" on May 19, arguing the Institute isn’t under executive control.
Also in D.C., District Court Judge John Bates, appointed by George W. Bush, slammed the brakes on an executive order targeting Jenner & Block, a law firm caught in the administration’s crosshairs.
This order, one of several signed in January targeting firms tied to cases against Trump or his political rivals, aimed to yank security clearances and bar employees from federal buildings—a clear shot across the bow.
Judge Bates claimed that it "seeks to chill legal representation" that the administration dislikes, violating constitutional checks; apparently, even a conservative judge sees this as overreach worth stopping cold.
Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, District Judge Leo T. Sorokin, an Obama appointee, tackled a January 20 executive order tied to what the administration labels "gender ideology," ruling to restore patient-safety articles removed from an online resource.
Judge Sorokin argued the plaintiffs are likely to prove this was "viewpoint discrimination" against the First Amendment, ordering the articles back online with a stern reminder that free speech isn’t up for cherry-picking.
While the intent to push back on progressive agendas is understandable, getting slapped with a constitutional violation label isn’t the win Team Trump was hoping for—sometimes, the pen isn’t mightier than the gavel.
These Friday rulings aren’t isolated; since Trump’s return to the White House in January, the administration has stumbled in court over policies like deporting unauthorized migrants to third countries, freezing foreign aid, and barring transgender individuals from military service.
With Republicans holding narrow majorities in Congress, the judiciary has emerged as the biggest hurdle to Trump’s agenda, and critics are already lining up to challenge more policies as potentially unlawful—expect more legal fireworks ahead.
President Trump hasn’t held back in criticizing these judicial decisions, hinting at a brewing clash between the executive and the courts, while White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields defended the president’s authority over security clearances, claiming such decisions are "core executive powers" beyond judicial reach—yet here we are, with judges begging to differ.