CNN’s Elie Honig: ‘Courts Can’t Just Second Guess and Overturn’ Trump – a ‘Big Win’ for President

CNN Senior Legal Analyst Elie Honig called a federal appeals court ruling a “big win” for President Donald Trump when discussing the decision with anchor Pamela Brown on Friday, because it demonstrates that “the courts can’t just second-guess the president and overturn him if they disagree” with him.

On Friday’s The Situation Room, Honig discussed the 9th Circuit’s late Thursday decision overturning a lower court ruling that Trump acted illegally when deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles. California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) took Trump to court over the deployment of the Guard without the consent or request of his office, and U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer initially issued a restraining order over the Trump administration retaining control of those troops deployed to Los Angeles.

“The courts have ruled on the Guard. They will be back under my command,” Newsom said at the time, touting the ruling as a huge win. “Donald Trump will be relieved of his command at noon tomorrow.”

However, a stay was almost immediately imposed on the decision by the 9th Circuit, pending a review by the three-judge panel. Having now completed the review, the appeals court’s ruling handed down on Thursday overturned Judge Breyer’s order and stated in the ruling that “it is likely that the President lawfully exercised his statutory authority.”

Trump called it a “BIG WIN” in a Truth Social post.

“The Judges obviously realized that Gavin Newscum is incompetent and ill prepared, but this is much bigger than Gavin, because all over the United States, if our Cities, and our people, need protection, we are the ones to give it to them should State and Local Police be unable, for whatever reason, to get the job done,” he wrote. “This is a Great Decision for our Country, and we will continue to protect and defend law-abiding Americans.”

Brown asked Honig on Friday how big a win it actually is for Trump.

“Well, it’s huge, Pam, because it goes to presidential powers and the extent of them,” he answered.

“So the core ruling here from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is, yes, the federal courts do have some role in reviewing the president’s decision to deploy the National Guard,” Honig explained. “However, the courts can’t just second-guess the president and overturn him if they disagree.”

Honig pointed out that, unless something is “patently absurd” then the federal judiciary has to give “broad deference” to the president’s authority in such cases.

“So it’s a big win for President Trump. As we know, he has sought at all times to expand his executive authority, and this is a win for him,” Honig said, although the court ruling did not indicate that this was an “expansion” of authority but confirmation of an existing authority.

Below is their full exchange:

BROWN: A federal appeals court has ruled in President Trump’s favor regarding control over thousands of members of California’s National Guard. For the very latest on this, we’re joined by CNN senior legal analyst Ellie Honig. Ellie, how big of a win is this for President Trump?

HONIG: Well, it’s huge, Pam, because it goes to presidential powers and the extent of them. So the core ruling here from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is, yes, the federal courts do have some role in reviewing the president’s decision to deploy the National Guard. However, the courts can’t just second-guess the president and overturn him if they disagree.

The Court of Appeals says we, all of us here in the federal judiciary, we have to give very broad deference to the president. So, unless his decision is patently absurd or based on bad faith, then we have to step back and let the president exercise this power. So it’s a big win for President Trump. As we know, he has sought at all times to expand his executive authority, and this is a win for him.

BROWN: And there is a hearing today on the matter. What can we expect there?

HONIG: So today, they’re going back into the district court, which is the federal trial court, to argue over the scope of exactly what the National Guard and other military forces can and cannot do. Now, it’s an ironclad principle of our legal system that the military cannot perform police law enforcement functions. They can’t do arrests, they can’t do interrogations, searches, and seizures.

Now, clearly, the National Guard can protect federal buildings. Both sides seem to agree on that. The question is, how about that in between? How about if federal law enforcement… Agents from ICE or the FBI is out making an arrest. Can the National Guard then go with them and not do the arrest themselves, but form a protective perimeter around the arrest as it’s happening?

So today, they’re gonna get into the details of what the National Guard and perhaps other military forces can and cannot do on the streets.

Watch the clip above via CNN.