Former President Donald Trump is demanding an investigation into what he calls a “rigged” judicial system after the same federal judge was assigned to oversee multiple high-profile cases involving his administration. Trump voiced frustration over what he described as a pattern of judicial bias, with particular focus on U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg, currently presiding over two major cases linked to Trump and his former officials.
Judge Boasberg, who serves in Washington, D.C., is currently handling a case attempting to block deportation flights of suspected members of the Venezuelan-linked Tren de Aragua gang. That case challenges the federal government’s effort to deport criminal migrants to El Salvador. Simultaneously, Boasberg is overseeing a lawsuit related to a Signal group chat between Trump-era officials that discussed potential military actions against Houthi forces in Yemen. Plaintiffs claim the chat violated the Federal Records Act.
Trump expressed outrage on Truth Social, questioning how one judge could be repeatedly assigned to politically sensitive cases involving him. “How disgraceful is it that ‘Judge’ James Boasberg has just been given a fourth ‘Trump Case,’ something which is, statistically, IMPOSSIBLE,” he wrote. Trump further criticized Boasberg as “Highly Conflicted,” alleging bias against him and citing what he described as “disqualifying family conflicts.”
According to federal campaign finance records, Judge Boasberg’s wife, Elizabeth Manson, has donated more than $11,000 to Democratic political campaigns. Notably, she contributed $3,000 to both the Hillary Victory Fund and Hillary for America during the 2016 presidential election. While judges are expected to remain impartial, Trump argues that such affiliations cast doubt on Boasberg’s neutrality, particularly in politically charged cases.
Trump also raised procedural concerns, suggesting the judge assignment process is being manipulated. He pointed to the court’s “wheel” system, a mechanism designed to randomly assign judges to cases, and asked whether it is still being used. “Boasberg… seems to be grabbing the ‘Trump Cases’ all to himself,” he wrote. “Is there still such a thing as the ‘wheel,’ where the Judges are chosen fairly, and at random?”
This dispute comes on the heels of several federal rulings that have disrupted executive actions under both Trump and President Biden. Just this week, the Justice Department petitioned the Supreme Court to intervene after a federal judge ordered the government to rehire approximately 16,000 probationary federal employees. Trump pointed to such decisions as part of a broader issue with judicial activism and overreach.
“Our Nation’s Courts are broken,” Trump asserted. “There must be an immediate investigation of this Rigged System, before it is too late!” His comments reflect growing concern over the impartiality of federal courts in highly partisan jurisdictions like New York and D.C., where conservative litigants and defendants have often fared poorly.
In response to the mounting concerns over federal judicial power, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) has scheduled a hearing for April 2. As the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Grassley intends to explore legislative solutions to limit the impact of sweeping court rulings and bring greater accountability to the federal bench.
This controversy touches on a broader issue: whether the courts are being used as political tools rather than neutral arbiters of the law. When judges with deep partisan ties oversee recurring cases involving political opponents, it undermines confidence in the legal system. Fairness in the courtroom should not be determined by geography or ideology, yet recent trends suggest that for some defendants, the venue may matter more than the facts.
