MaddowBlog-Chief Justice John Roberts' shot across Trump's bow wasn't his first [View all]

[LetMyPeopleVote]

After Trump called for a judge’s impeachment, John Roberts expressed his disagreement with the Republican. It was not, however, the first time.

Link to tweet

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/john-roberts-trump-impeachment-rulings-supreme-court-rcna196944

What might not be obvious, however, is that this wasn’t the first time Roberts sent a rhetorical shot across the president’s bow.

In 2018, Trump derided a ruling from a jurist the Republican described as “an Obama judge.” In response to a question from The Associated Press, the chief justice took issue with the comment.

“We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges. What we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them,” Roberts said. On the day before Thanksgiving, he concluded, “The independent judiciary is something we should all be thankful for."

More recently, as 2024 came to an end and attention shifted to Trump’s second inaugural, Roberts issued a public warning about threats to the judicial system.

In an annual year-end report, the chief justice wrote, “Within the past few years, elected officials from across the political spectrum have raised the specter of open disregard for federal court rulings. These dangerous suggestions, however sporadic, must be soundly rejected.”

Again, Roberts didn’t call out anyone by name, though the only prominent political voices who’ve made comments along these lines have offices in the Trump West Wing.

If recent history is any guide, Trump will likely soon start whining about the chief justice by way of his social media platform. At least we’ll know why.