Trump is 'his own worst enemy' on judges — 'and so much else': WSJ

President Donald Trump greets Supreme Court justices after addressing a joint session of Congress, March 4, 2025. Image via Screengrab / PBS.

President Donald Trump and his Republican supporters have long desired to stack America's courts with right-wing judges, an agenda that exists somewhat uncomfortably next to Trump's repeated alienation of those same judges. Now a conservative publication is arguing that Trump failed to realize the potential for a drastic Republican reshaping of the judiciary.

"On judges as on so much else, Mr. Trump is his own worst enemy," wrote The Wall Street Journal's Editorial Board on Wednesday. The publication observed that "one disappointment of President Trump’s second term is the relatively fewer judicial confirmations. With his nominees about to hit a brick wall next year, Republicans can make up some of the lost time by moving as many judges as possible in the lame-duck session."

They added, "Since January 2025, the Senate has confirmed 56 judicial nominees, including 10 for circuit courts, 45 for district courts and one to the Court of International Trade. In the same period in Mr. Trump’s first term, the Senate confirmed 84 judges, including 29 circuit judges, 53 district judges and Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Senate Democrats confirmed 84 judges in Joe Biden’s corresponding time frame."

The publication concluded, "The judiciary is a major part of any President’s legacy, and the shame is that the GOP rout last week will cut short Mr. Trump’s opportunity. Only nominees who pass ideological approval by Democrats will be confirmed for the next two years. Mark it down as another result of the many White House mistakes that cost GOP control of the Senate."

In August, Judge John J. McConnell Jr., the Chief Justice of the United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, told MS NOW’s Nicolle Wallace that Trump's attacks on the judiciary have negatively impacted the judges.

“It's not an easy thing for any of us to come forward and talk about the personal threats," McConnell told Wallace. "It's also not an easy thing for us to come forward as judges, because you all work on[.] There is an unprecedented amount of personal attacks against judges — not just me, but all across the country. It's systematic, it's growing, it's severe. There are sustained efforts.”

He added, “There are, in my opinion, results of sustained efforts by high-level members of the executive branch who have called judges rogue, insurrectionists, radicals, haters, moneyed, lunatics, corrupt, vicious. And this constant personal attack on my fellow district judges and myself and our families is the beginning of the attack on equal justice under the law, according to the rule of law.”

He continued, “My story is not unique — it's disturbing, but it's not unique. I received six or seven credible death threats. My daughter was doxxed by Laura Loomer and by Elon Musk. I have a picture of myself on a wanted poster made by a congressman. Ethics complaints were filed against me, and some of the attacks were against my wife — certainly not a public figure. And so that level of personally attacking judges by a co-equal branch of government is detrimental to our democracy as we know it.”

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