White House Press Secretary took a chainsaw to the fake news press, which has been howling about some phantom constitutional crisis over President Trump’s spending cuts, which a little district court judge ruled was illegal. Judge John J. McConnell Jr. tried to pull the “plain text” nonsense on this when he is anything but a jurist in that vein of constitutional interpretation (via NYT):
A federal judge said on Monday that the White House had defied his order to release billions of dollars in federal grants, marking the first time a judge has expressly declared that the Trump administration is disobeying a judicial mandate.
The ruling by Judge John J. McConnell Jr. in Rhode Island federal court ordered administration officials to comply with what the judge called “the plain text” of a ruling he issued on Jan. 29.
That order, he wrote, was “clear and unambiguous, and there are no impediments to the Defendants’ compliance.”
Shortly after Monday’s ruling, Trump administration lawyers appealed the judge’s initial order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, asking the appellate court to pause Judge McConnell’s order to keep federal funds flowing while their case was being considered. The White House responded with more defiance.
At an Oval Office event yesterday, where the president signed an order to further government agency compliance with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Trump said he’d comply with the ruling but appeal it. And a judgment in that appeal has been rendered: Trump can freeze funds without approval from the district courts.
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BOOM! Federal judge rules that President Trump can withhold funding without needing prior approval from the district court. pic.twitter.com/WKvSewTONk
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) February 12, 2025
What an insane ruling that district judges control the executive branch. And would it shock you that Judge McConnell is a woke acolyte with videos to prove it? Natalie Winters had a thread on this supposed judge who offered a “plain text” ruling, who called Trump a “tyrant,” said the rule of law applies differently based on race and gender identification, and said the first Trump presidency was as damaging as the American Civil War and the Jim Crow era.
Judge John McConnell Jr. says as a "middle class, white male privileged person" he needs to "understand" criminals who are "women, black, or transgender" and that the "law applies to them where they are." pic.twitter.com/ZT9LTI7l5y
— Natalie Winters (@nataliegwinters) February 12, 2025
Judge McConnell equates President Trump's first four years to the damage inflicted by the Civil War and Jim Crow laws.
— Natalie Winters (@nataliegwinters) February 12, 2025
He also compares President Trump a "tyrant." pic.twitter.com/I0REreofkR
These clips only reinforce that court rulings against Trump aren’t based on the law; it’s all animus. You knew that already, but now we have video evidence of the lunacy.
Karoline Leavitt calls OUT media outlets in the briefing room for their “constitutional crisis” fearmongering. pic.twitter.com/mHKd4SNYxu
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) February 12, 2025
Karoline Leavitt whips out literal receipts when asked to provide evidence of fraud, waste, and abuse found by DOGE 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/GqY4r1eXJE
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) February 12, 2025
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