Erwin Chemerinsky writes:

It is not hyperbole to say that the future of American constitutional democracy now rests on a single question: Will President Trump and his administration defy court orders?

Federal judges have issued more than a dozen temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions against Trump administration actions. But it is unclear whether the government will comply, and in at least two cases, judges have said their orders were ignored.

The Trump administration is already facing at least 100 legal challenges. Two recent court orders no doubt will test Mr. Trump’s patience.

The Supreme Court this week upheld the authority of a Federal District Court judge in Washington to lift a Trump freeze on nearly $2 billion in foreign aid appropriated by Congress. The government had missed a deadline set by the judge to send out the money, which Mr. Trump had blocked on his first day in office. And on Thursday, another federal judge, in Rhode Island, extended an order forcing the Trump administration to release billions of dollars in congressionally approved funds for nearly two dozen states and the District of Columbia. The judge said the White House had “put itself above Congress” in blocking the money.

But the hard truth for those looking to the courts to rein in the Trump administration is that the Constitution gives judges no power to compel compliance with their rulings — it is the executive branch that ultimately enforces judicial orders. If a president decides to ignore a judicial ruling, the courts are likely rendered impotent.

Perhaps the threat of flouting court orders, suggested by Mr. Trump, and his vice president, JD Vance, and some of his nominees, is a way to put pressure on courts to treat the Trump administration favorably. Trump allies have also been pressing for the impeachment of judges who rule against his administration’s policies. Elon Musk wrote recently on his platform X that “the only way to restore rule of the people in America is to impeach judges” and “we must impeach to save democracy.” Mike Lee of Utah, a Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said on social media that “corrupt judges should be impeached and removed” and that rulings against the administration gave the impression of a “judicial coup.”

Removing federal judges because of disagreement with their rulings would be unprecedented. The Constitution allows for impeachment only for “treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.” There is no plausible basis for claiming that standard has been met. And it is risible to see conservatives, who repeatedly went to court to enjoin Biden and Obama administration policies, now saying that the judiciary should not review executive branch actions. All of this is about an administration that does not want to be constrained by the Constitution, laws or courts. [Continue reading…]