The Trump administration’s battle with the judiciary just escalated — again.
The Department of Justice, under Attorney General Pam Bondi, has filed a formal misconduct complaint against U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, accusing him of making “improper public comments” about President Trump and undermining judicial integrity.
The complaint, written by Bondi’s Chief of Staff Chad Mizelle and addressed to D.C. Circuit Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan, calls for Boasberg to be removed from a high-profile case involving the deportation of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador.
The DOJ alleges Boasberg crossed the line during a March 11 Judicial Conference session by warning Chief Justice John Roberts and two dozen other judges that Trump’s administration might “disregard rulings of federal courts” and trigger “a constitutional crisis.” The complaint calls those remarks “unprecedented” and claims they were unsupported by facts.
It goes further, connecting Boasberg’s words to his actions days later, when he issued a temporary restraining order to block the removal of violent Tren de Aragua members to El Salvador — a decision the Supreme Court later vacated. The DOJ argues this demonstrates Boasberg was acting on a “preconceived belief” that Trump wouldn’t follow court orders.
“Taken together, Judge Boasberg’s words and deeds violate Canons of the Code of Conduct for United States Judges, erode public confidence in judicial neutrality, and warrant a formal investigation,” the complaint says.
The Justice Department wants Chief Judge Srinivasan to refer the matter to a special investigative committee and to have Boasberg removed from the J.G.G. v. Trump case “to prevent further erosion of public confidence.”
This isn’t the first time Bondi’s DOJ has gone after a federal judge. In February, they lodged a similar complaint against U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes for alleged misconduct in a case challenging Trump’s ban on transgender service members.
Boasberg has been a frequent target of Trump’s ire, particularly after his March 15 emergency order demanding planes carrying deported Venezuelan migrants be “immediately” returned to U.S. soil — an order the administration didn’t follow. The judge later found “probable cause” for contempt, accusing the administration of “willful disregard,” though the D.C. Circuit stayed that ruling.
