Speaker Johnson Refuses To Say Whether Trump Should Comply With Court Orders
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) declined to say whether President Donald Trump and his administration should comply with court rulings.
The administration has been sued on multiple fronts due to Trump’s dismissal of federal employees and his freezing of certain funds appropriated by Congress. Some of the suits stem from the actions of Elon Musk and his “Department of Government Efficiency,” which has meddled in the internal workings of various federal departments. As of Monday, at least 10 judges have issued rulings ordering the Trump administration to stop various actions it has been taking. In response, Musk, Vice President JD Vance, and other conservatives have suggested the administration has the right to ignore court orders.
On Monday, a federal judge said Trump is in violation of an order to release grant funding that he froze last month.
Meanwhile at the U.S. Treasury, Musk and his cadre of young staffers accessed the department’s massive payment system. On Saturday, a federal judge ruled Musk and his team’s access be halted because of the potential for “irreparable harm.” The judge also ordered that Musk delete records he had downloaded at the department.
CNN’s Manu Raju caught up with the Speaker of the House on Monday and asked if Trump should abide by court rulings:
RAJU: Should the White House comply if a federal court orders them to do something, such as destroying the records that they downloaded from the Treasury Department?
JOHNSON: Well, look, there are appellate processes and all of that. I haven’t followed the latest on the litigation, but obviously we have systems that have to work… We’re fully supportive of what the DOGE effort is doing and what the president is doing. It’s a very aggressive agenda that was promised to the voters. Remember, he’s delivering on campaign promises right now. We are going to be codifying a lot of these changes. And what they’ve uncovered is frankly, shocking… This is a good development. I wish the courts would allow the executive and the legislative branches to work.
Raju said he also asked Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) the same question.
“And he indicated that the courts have called balls and strikes,” Raju relayed. “He reiterated the importance of the role of the courts. He did not say directly that the White House absolutely should comply.”
Watch above via CNN.
