US Senate Republicans seek to limit judges' power via Trump's tax-cut bill
(Reuters) -U.S. Senate Republicans have added language to President Donald Trump's massive tax and spending bill that would restrict the ability of judges to block government policies they conclude are unlawful.
Text of the Republican-led U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee's contribution to the bill released by its chair, Senator Chuck Grassley, late on Thursday would limit the ability of judges to issue preliminary injunctions blocking federal policies unless the party suing posts a bond to cover the government's costs if the ruling is later overturned.
The bond requirement in the Senate's version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is different from the provision the Republican-controlled House of Representatives included when it passed the bill last month that would curb courts' power in a different way.
The House version curtails the ability of judges to enforce orders holding officials in contempt if they violate injunctions. Judges use contempt orders to bring parties into compliance, usually by ratcheting up measures from fines to jail time. Some judges who have blocked Trump administration actions have said officials are at risk of being held in contempt for not complying with their orders.
Congressional Republicans have called for banning or curtailing nationwide injunctions blocking government policies after key parts of Trump's agenda have been stymied by such court rulings. The House in April voted 219-213 along largely party lines in favor of the No Rogue Rulings Act to do so, but the Senate has not yet taken up the measure.
A White House memo in March directed heads of government agencies to request that plaintiffs post bonds if they are seeking an injunction against an agency policy. Such bonds can make obtaining an injunction a cost-prohibitive option in cases concerning multi-billion-dollar agenda items.
Grassley's office said in a statement the language the Judiciary Committee proposed would ensure judges enforce an existing requirement that they make a party seeking a preliminary injunction provide a security bond to cover costs incurred by a defendant if a judge's ruling is later overturned.
Judges rarely require such bonds when a lawsuit is not pitting two private parties against each other but instead challenging an alleged unlawful or unconstitutional government action. Several judges have denied the Trump administration's requests for bonds or issued nominal ones.
Republicans, who control the Senate 53-47, are using complex budget rules to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill Act with a simple majority vote, rather than the 60 votes needed to advance most legislation in the 100-seat chamber.
The Senate Judiciary Committee's piece of the bill would also provide the judiciary funding to study the costs to taxpayers associated with such injunctions and provide training for judges about the problems associated with them.
A spokesperson for Senator Dick Durbin, the Senate Judiciary Committee's top Democrat, criticized the Republican-drafted legislative text, saying "Republicans are targeting nationwide injunctions because they're beholden to a president who is breaking the law — but the courts are not."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
a minute ago
- The Hill
Trump on seeking third term: ‘Probably not'
President Trump said Tuesday he would 'probably not' seek a constitutionally prohibited third term. 'No, probably not,' Trump said with a chuckle when asked about the idea on CNBC's 'Squawk Box.' 'I'd like to run. I have the best poll numbers I've ever had,' Trump added. The president and some of his allies have repeatedly floated the idea of seeking a third term. At times, those comments have been dismissed as a joke, though Trump has at other points appeared more serious about the idea. 'People are asking me to run. I don't know, I never looked into it. And they do say there's a way you can do it, but I don't know about that,' Trump said earlier this year. The 22nd Amendment prohibits an individual from being elected to more than two terms as president. Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) in January proposed an amendment to the Constitution that would effectively allow Trump to vie for another term in the White House by creating a carve-out for those who served nonconsecutive terms to run for a third time. The proposal has essentially no chance of passing Congress. While many Democrats have waved away Trump's comments as a distraction from kitchen table issues, the president's refusal to acknowledge his legitimate defeat in the 2020 election has sparked fears that he may not leave office in 2029 when his current term ends. Some political strategists have suggested that Trump's talk of a third term also helps keep a lid on chatter about the 2028 presidential race, taking the spotlight away from the president's administration.
Axios
a minute ago
- Axios
Early data shows major homicide drops in 2025 so far
Homicides declined in major U.S. cities — by more than 50% in some communities — during the first six months of the year, according to new data from an organization of law enforcement executives. Why it matters: The stats are the latest signs that violent crime in America is falling from the COVID crime wave, and that drop appears to be accelerating during President Trump's first months in office. The big picture: Violent crime ticked up early in President Biden's term, but reports show it's dropped significantly since then as law enforcement agencies responded to the pandemic surge and adopted more detailed recordkeeping. The recent downward trend in crime also counters Trump's false claims that immigration had sparked rising crime nationwide — a reason he gave for his mass deportation plan. By the numbers: Reports from 68 law enforcement agencies showed a 19% drop in homicides in the first six months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, according to stats compiled by the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCCA). An Axios analysis of the MCCA data found that Denver, Honolulu, Orlando, Portland and Tampa all had a 50% or more decrease in homicides during that period. Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Louisville, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Seattle all had declines in homicides of more than 30%. The intrigue: Aurora, Colorado — a city Trump repeatedly and falsely singled out as being overrun by Venezuelan immigrant gangs during the 2024 election — saw a 16% drop in homicides. Phoenix, another city Republicans claimed was besieged by violent crime because of undocumented immigrants, had an 11% decline in homicides during the first six months of this year. The data from MCCA's self-reported agencies included New York City in this report. Its previous reports didn't have New York City, which saw a 27% drop in homicides. Yes, but: Some communities did see a jump during this period. Boston experienced a 143% surge in homicides during the first six months of 2025. Cincinnati, El Paso, Fort Worth, Kansas City, Mo., and Milwaukee also saw increases, the Axios analysis found. Zoom in: Overall, violent crime appears to be falling in every category. Rape was down 9%, robbery decreased 18% and aggravated assaults fell 10%. What they're saying: "President Trump is delivering on his promise to Make America Safe Again — and the results speak for themselves," White House Assistant Press Secretary Liz Huston told Axios. "The safety of the American people is President Trump's top priority, and he's taking decisive action to protect our communities, including removing dangerous illegal aliens from our streets." The other side: "The only thing the Trump administration deserves credit for is attempting to kneecap Baltimore's progress," Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott's office said in a statement to Axios. Baltimore saw a 23% decline in homicides. "Earlier this year, the Trump Department of Justice cancelled more than $800 million in violence prevention grants." The mayor's office credited the city's Comprehensive Violence Prevention Plan and investments in new parks, playgrounds, rec centers, schools and libraries. "These historic lows are the result of a comprehensive public safety strategy that treats gun violence as a public health issue." Zoom out: The quarterly reports from MCCA typically have been a good measure of trends that are reflected in the annual FBI crime data released a year later. What we're watching: Trump has said he will tie federal grants to local police departments based on a requirement that they participate in his plans to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.
The Hill
a minute ago
- The Hill
Bacon: Nebraska GDP down 6 percent under Trump
Rep. Don Bacon (Neb.), a moderate Republican, said he's concerned about the U.S. economy, noting his state saw a 6 percent annual drop in real gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of 2025. In an interview with CNN's Phil Mattingly, Bacon pointed to the recent jobs data and the latest round of tariffs as reason for his pessimism about the economy. 'From my vantage point here in Nebraska, we're seeing a bit of a troubled economic mess — or, right now, it's a troubled time,' Bacon said. 'In Nebraska, the GDP here has decreased by 6 percent over the last year, and it's all about trade, it's all about getting corn and soybeans out the door,' Bacon continued. 'So, what I hear with, you know, weak jobs numbers, we're sort of seeing that in Nebraska right now.' The Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis released a report in late June showing real GDP in the first quarter of 2025 decreased in 39 states, with Nebraska and Iowa showing the largest decline with annual rates of -6.1 percent. Declines in agriculture contributed most significantly to the drop. Bacon, one of three House Republicans reelected in districts that voted for the former Vice President Harris- Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.) ticket in 2024, has criticized President Trump's trade policy in the past. He again expressed his support for free and fair trade, saying, 'Free trade provides the best products at the best price, in the most efficient manner,' while adding that, in circumstances where 'it's not fair trade, the president should try to correct that.' 'But doing tariffs against 80 different countries, I have a hard time accepting that as a sound strategy,' Bacon continued. 'I think in the end the American consumer would be paying a lot more for the price of their goods. And we're already starting to see that because in the end, tariffs are a tax on consumers.' The lawmaker, who is retiring at the end of his term, said he's hearing from Fortune 500 companies and agriculture producers that 'we're losing a share of the market right now,' which he said is going to affect jobs numbers and is already having a small effect on inflation, which Bacon expects to increase. 'But if the president sticks with these numbers, I think over time, these 25 percent tariffs will be represented in the goods we buy from these countries. And so I'm concerned about the strength of our economy,' he said.
