Crowning Trump: The Bill That Breaks the Courts

A hidden provision in the House’s latest bill could neuter judicial power and hand Trump unchecked authority.

Monic here - The bill that just passed the House has the potential to strip the courts of their powers and essentially make Trump a king. The news cycle is again overflowing with what I call the flood of awful. From the debacle of the South African president getting the Zelenskyy treatment in the Oval Office—complete with badgering and an onslaught of lies—to the Qatari flying palace being accepted to this god-awful bill, it’s all a lot.

Because this bill strips so many of their health care, that’s getting a lot of attention — as it should. But this one provision could be the nail in the coffin of democracy.

Trump has made no effort to quell the idea of him being king. Back in 2018, Time magazine had this image as their cover: a suited-up Trump looking in the mirror with the image of a king reflected back at him, under the headline “King Me.”

The story titles tell a story that is chilling in their prescience:

• Visions of Absolute Power

• Trump vs. The Constitution

• Why Mueller Won’t Indict

Mind you, this was back in 2018. Clearly, some in our country learned nothing the first time around.

That edition of Time magazine was both warning and prophecy. While Trump did not like Time’s coverage — because it was a warning to the public — he took the imagery in hand and ran with it when he posted this image in February of this year. A smugly leering Trump with the caption “Long Live the King.”

The official White House account posted this image on social media, as did Trump

Almost daily, Trump and this regime trample on the Constitution, break laws, and defy court orders. Much has been written about how the courts are the last line of defense for democracy — and so far, they’ve held.

Every kid in America grows up learning basic civics lessons: that our government is composed of three co-equal branches:

• Executive (the president)

• Legislative (Congress)

• Judicial (the courts)

And it’s that whole checks and balances thing that has long stood in the way of Trump actually being king.

The first time around, there were many guardrails in place. Trump’s Vice President and Cabinet largely functioned as checks on his worst impulses. That’s why nearly all of them warned against putting Trump back into the White House.

Again: some in our country refused to learn that lesson.

This time around, it’s the courts holding up the walls of the republic.

Time after time, Trump is losing in court. Judges appointed by both Democratic and Republican administrations are ruling against the blatantly unconstitutional and unlawful policies the Trump regime is trying to implement.

While that’s all well and good, there’s also the fact that Trump is basically thumbing his nose at these judges. His plan appears to be to neuter the courts by simply ignoring them.

The Supreme Court told Trump to “facilitate” the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was trafficked to a prison in El Salvador. The regime admitted they erred in sending Abrego Garcia — but have still done nothing to get him back.

Multiple lower federal courts have ruled that Trump must stop spiriting people away without giving them a chance to know the charges against them and have the evidence reviewed by a neutral judge or magistrate (the bare minimum of due process). Again — nothing.

(And we won’t even begin to get into the fact that Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem doesn’t seem to know what habeas corpus even is. But I digress.)

Judge James Boasberg, Chief Judge of the federal district court for the District of Columbia, issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump regime from flying individuals to the prison in El Salvador without due process.

Boasberg has found that the Trump regime has willfully disregarded his order.

While the wheels of justice move slowly, they do move. So eventually, this would all catch up to Trump — under our current system.

If the Trump regime’s actions are found in contempt of court, the courts would begin fining or jailing the Trump lawyers who argue before them — and possibly invoke contempt all the way up the line to Trump.

Boasberg is poised to begin that process if the men relegated to CECOT in El Salvador aren’t given a chance to legally challenge their removal.

Separately, U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis has demanded the Trump administration explain why it is not complying with the Supreme Court order to “facilitate” the release of Abrego Garcia.

In response, Secretary Noem has declared that Abrego Garcia “will never be allowed to return to the United States.” Judge Xinis responded:

“That sounds to me like an admission. That’s about as clear as it can get.”

So, if left to the maddeningly slow process of justice, eventually the Supreme Court and lower courts would hold the administration in contempt and enforce citations. Right?

Not if Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” passes.

Buried in it is this provision:

“No court of the United States may use appropriated funds to enforce a contempt citation for failure to comply with an injunction or temporary restraining order if no security was given when the injunction or order was issued…”

In other words: no federal court may enforce a contempt citation.

With this bill, the courts lose their power to hold officials accountable.

Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law and Distinguished Professor of Law, notes that this provision removes any and all restraints on Trump:

“Without the contempt power, judicial orders are meaningless and can be ignored. There is no way to understand this except as a way to keep the Trump administration from being restrained when it violates the Constitution or otherwise breaks the law.

This would be a stunning restriction on the power of the federal courts. The Supreme Court has long recognized that the contempt power is integral to the authority of the federal courts. Without the ability to enforce judicial orders, they are rendered mere advisory opinions which parties are free to disregard.”

Like I said: a flood of awful.

This provision, along with the Supreme Court’s ruling last summer granting presidential immunity for acts committed while in office, essentially hands Trump the crown.

And if that’s not bad enough, here’s more from the flood of awful, compiled from the Alt National Park Service account:

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What’s in the Bill (and Project 2025):

Healthcare & Social Safety Net:

• Sec. 10008 – Expands work requirements for SNAP

• Sec. 10011 – Repeals education & obesity prevention grants

• Sec. 10012 – Restricts immigrant access to SNAP

• Sec. 110115 – Creates “Trump Accounts” and savings pilot program

• Sec. 44125 – Bans federal Medicaid/CHIP funding for gender transition for minors

• Sec. 44141 – Requires states to impose Medicaid work requirements

• Sec. 44110 – Cuts off Medicaid/CHIP for those without verified legal status

Defense & Foreign Policy:

• Sec. 20001 – Military expansion for “quality of life” and Indo-Pacific readiness

Environmental Deregulation:

• Sec. 42108 – Repeals Clean Air Act emissions provisions

• Sec. 42117 – Eliminates environmental/climate justice block grants

• Sec. 42301 – Strips EPA authority over vehicle emissions

• Secs. 80307–80309 – Cancels National Park/BLM funds under the IRA

• Sec. 41008 – Creates a “De-Risking Fund” for fossil fuel companies

Federal Power & Worker Rights:

• Sec. 30051 – Blocks new agency rules without strict cost-benefit review

• Sec. 90004 – Revives “Schedule F” to fire new federal hires at will

• Sec. 90005–90006 – Weakens federal pensions and eliminates early retirement

• Sec. 80121(h) – Strips courts of jurisdiction over federal permits

State Authority & Oversight:

• Sec. 44001 – Preempts state AI regulations for 10 years

• Sec. 50003 – Guts the CFPB

• Sec. 50002 – Cuts enforcement powers of oversight bodies

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If you made it through all of that without your eyes glazing over, congratulations. You care about this country enough to know what’s going on. If you made it through without becoming angry and alarmed — well, I don’t have words for you.

(OK, I have lots of words, but I can’t write them here.)

So here’s your homework:
Call your members of Congress and tell them not to pass Trump’s One Big Ugly Bill.
There’s a lot to work with in that bill to help you conjure some good talking points.

Call early. Call often.
Use the 5 Calls app or call the Capitol Hill switchboard at 202-224-3121.

Let’s save democracy together.

We’re truly grateful for the time you spend reading, thinking, and being here. 💙