Two senior Republicans are asking Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. to address anonymous comments from lower federal judges criticizing how the Supreme Court has handled Trump-related cases. Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, the chairmen of the Senate and House judiciary committees, sent a letter Wednesday raising concerns about remarks reported by The New York Times and NBC News.
The news outlets cited unnamed federal judges who expressed frustration with the Supreme Court’s handling of emergency appeals tied to cases involving President Donald Trump, The Washington Times reported.
Grassley and Jordan described the reported comments as “inflammatory” and said they could potentially violate the judiciary’s code of conduct.
“We are deeply concerned that these public attacks on the court from sitting federal judges damage the public’s faith and confidence in our judicial system. When judges call into question the legitimacy of their own branch of government, they erode faith in the institution itself,” the lawmakers wrote.
According to the reports, some lower court judges said the Supreme Court has issued interim rulings on its emergency docket that benefited the Trump administration without providing detailed explanations.
NBC News reported that one judge said the Supreme Court was “effectively assisting the Trump administration in ‘undermining the lower courts.’”
The New York Times quoted a judge describing the relationship between district courts and the high court as a “war zone.”
The president has largely prevailed in early emergency rulings, with the Supreme Court lifting lower court orders that had blocked personnel actions and certain immigration enforcement measures.
Grassley and Jordan said judges are prohibited from making public comments that could undermine confidence in the judiciary and are also barred from commenting on pending or impending matters before the courts.
“While we do not yet know the full extent of the comments or who the judges are, we remain convinced that judges should not be going to the press to undermine and denigrate the Supreme Court,” they wrote.
The lawmakers asked Roberts to inform Congress whether he has ordered an investigation or issued guidance in response to the reported comments.
Chief Justice Roberts has previously issued public statements defending the independence of the judiciary.
In 2018, during Trump’s first term, Roberts responded to criticism from the president about “Obama judges” blocking administration policies.
“We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges. What we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them,” Roberts said at the time.
The letter was sent as the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Wednesday in cases challenging President Trump’s assertion of broad tariff authority.
Lower courts have ruled that the president exceeded the authority granted by Congress in imposing certain tariffs on foreign goods.
New York Republicans on Thursday filed an emergency request with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to halt a state court decision that would require a new congressional map and potentially eliminate the state’s only Republican-held House seat ahead of the 2026 elections.
The petition, filed directly to the Supreme Court, asks justices to stay an order by a state judge in Manhattan who ruled the boundaries of the 11th Congressional District — currently represented by Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R) — unconstitutionally dilute minority voting strength and must be redrawn.
Malliotakis and Republican members of the state elections board contend the ruling is disruptive so close to the election cycle, with nominating petitions scheduled to begin Feb. 24, and that last-minute changes to district lines could throw the state’s electoral process into chaos.
“Applicants and the people of New York have the right to conduct their congressional elections under the lawful map that the New York Legislature adopted starting on February 24, free from a judicial mandate that violates multiple provisions of the United States Constitution,” the congresswoman said in her petition to the justices.