OPINION:
Defiance of court orders sets a bad precedent for the rule of law. Sometimes, however, following an order like the one issued Monday by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani could lead to even worse outcomes.
Without bothering to listen to the other side, the Boston-based magistrate, appointed to the bench by President Barack Obama, temporarily blocked the portion of the One Big Beautiful Bill that says federal funds can’t go to abortion providers.
Planned Parenthood operates 600 centers around the nation that killed 400,000 unborn babies in 2023. The organization’s California facilities alone hauled in $328 million from the feds. Desperate to keep the blood money flowing, the abortionists’ lawyers sued, claiming Medicaid cash is used solely for benign “health services.” Federal lawmakers disagree, realizing any dollar sent to Planned Parenthood supports this grisly enterprise.
Barely two weeks ago, the Supreme Court rejected a challenge to a South Carolina law that prohibited sending Medicaid dollars to Planned Parenthood. It’s rather unlikely the high court would offer less deference to Congress on the same topic.
Ever since President Trump returned to Washington, judicial leftists have pilloried the president for implementing his agenda without first going through the legislative process. This case exposes the hollow nature of those complaints, because it makes no difference to the same obstructionists that the policies here were properly enacted.
Under America’s founding document, “No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.” The law has now denied appropriations to the abortionists, but Judge Talwani insists on drawing the money despite the law.
Judge Talwani’s actions suggest she may be a scofflaw. She provided same-day customer service to Planned Parenthood, instantly approving the request for a restraining order based on nothing but the organization’s assertions in a court filing. Federal rules require judges who employ such extraordinary measures to “state why the order was issued without notice,” which she has not done.
Moreover, a hearing on the motion ought to be heard “at the earliest possible time, taking precedence over all other matters.” No longer in a rush, her honor scheduled that hearing for July 21. Sen. Mike Lee, a former Supreme Court clerk, had harsh words for this conduct.
“We have the best judicial system in the world, but it’s run by fallible, mortal humans,” the Utah Republican said on X. “People make mistakes. But unless I’m missing something here, this wasn’t an honest mistake. This was a pretty egregious judicial usurpation of legislative power.”
He expects his House colleagues will be drafting articles of impeachment, because it’s not the court’s place to second guess policy decisions of the people’s elected representatives. James Madison, the father of the Constitution, explained the Framers discarded a proposal that would have given judges veto power over newly adopted laws.
“This makes the Judiciary Dept paramount in fact to the Legislature, which was never intended, and can never be proper,” Madison wrote in his notes on a draft of Virginia’s constitution.
Judge Talwani is ignoring the U.S. Constitution, federal law and apparently the judicial rulebook she’s supposed to respect. Something needs to be done to correct this misbehavior. Mr. Trump will surely be patient and indulge this partisan who will enjoy being celebrated as a resistance hero for the next few weeks. The president knows her victory won’t last.
The incident underscores the need for Congress to act to curb judicial hubris.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.