Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said he is committed to solving “judicial overreach” after federal judges moved to stop Trump’s deportation of criminal migrants.
Grassley, in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, voiced his support for President Donald Trump’s memo directing federal agencies to enforce the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure, which states that federal courts must require parties seeking a preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order to provide a financial guarantee. This aims to deter “frivolous lawsuits” and ensures “coverage for lost taxpayer dollars when injunctions are later deemed wrongly issued,” according to a press release by Grassley’s office.
“Over the last few months, I have watched with concern as individual district judges have issued sweeping injunctions that reach far beyond the case or controversy before them. These orders are often issued as preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders on an expedited basis with limited hearings,” Grassley wrote.
The Iowa senator revealed:
According to a 2023 Harvard Law Review study, there have been 96 nationwide injunctions spanning the four presidencies from 2001 to 2023, but 64 of them—2/3 of all nationwide injunctions over that time—targeted President Trump during his first four years in office. Nearly all of those orders were imposed by judges appointed by Democratic presidents, and 54 of the 64 orders were issued as preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders.
Many of these injunctions have sought to stymy Trump’s efforts to deport criminal migrants and illegal alien gang members from the United States.