House GOP leaders have little appetite to launch a full-scale impeachment process against judges who have been blocking President Donald Trump’s agenda, sources said Thursday.
Three people – two senior House GOP aides and one source familiar with leadership’s discussions – told Fox News Digital that House leadership does not see impeachment as the most effective way to hold accountable those they view as “activist” judges.
Republican leaders are still looking into it, however, after Trump himself called for the impeachment of U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg over the weekend. Boasberg issued an emergency 14-day injunction on the Trump administration’s deportation of suspected Tren De Aragua gang members under the Alien Enemies Act.
But impeachment would largely be a symbolic gesture, even if such a move passed the House.
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“I don’t think we know if we have the votes, and it’s another intense whipping process for something that won’t move at all in the Senate,” one senior House GOP aide said. “I think our focus is to do something that is easier to get votes for and could actually get all the Republicans in the Senate.”
A second senior House GOP aide was more blunt with Fox News Digital: “It’s likelier that President Trump will acquire Canada as our 51st state than the U.S. House of Representatives impeaching federal judges.”
“This is an impossible task,” the second senior aide said.
A third source familiar with House GOP leadership discussions said, “The impeachment route isn’t anyone’s favorite on this.”
It’s being pushed by a faction of conservatives primarily in the House Freedom Caucus, however – and they appear buoyed by Trump’s support for impeaching Boasberg.
Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, introduced a resolution to impeach Boasberg for abuse of power.
Gill told Fox News Digital earlier this week that Boasberg was a “rogue” judge who was “overstepping” his authority.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, who previously told Fox News Digital that all options were on the table, suggested in multiple media interviews this week that the committee could hold a hearing on the matter.
Reps. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., Eli Crane, R-Ariz., and Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., are pushing resolutions to impeach other federal judges who blocked Trump policies as well.
However, with just 53 Republican senators, any impeachment resolution would need the help of Democrats to reach the two-thirds threshold required for removal after a Senate trial – which is highly unlikely to happen.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on the Constitution, said all options should be available to Republicans.
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“We ought to look at [impeachment], we ought to look at jurisdiction-stripping, we ought to look at every option that needs to be addressed about judges that are actively taking steps to try to undermine the presidency,” Roy told Fox News Digital in a brief interview on Thursday.
He also pointed out that an impeachment by the House is in itself a punishment, although symbolic – though Roy noted he was not “for or against” any one specific path right now.
It’s worth noting that former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas remains the second-ever Cabinet secretary impeached, a permanent note on his legacy even though the then-Democrat-controlled Senate quickly dismissed a trial.
But getting the Mayorkas impeachment resolution passed through the House was a messy political affair, when the GOP was dealing with a similarly slim margin. It took two House-wide votes to pass that measure, with Republicans falling one vote short on the first attempt and then narrowly passing the resolution with three GOP defections on the second.
GOP leaders have had more success with critical votes this year, however, with Trump in the White House pressing holdouts on key legislation.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is not ruling anything out right now, at least publicly. A spokesperson for Johnson told Fox News Digital that he would look at all options available to take on “activist judges.”
“Activist judges with political agendas pose a significant threat to the rule of law, equal justice, and the separation of powers. The speaker looks forward to working with the Judiciary Committee as they review all available options under the Constitution to address this urgent matter,” the spokesperson said.
Two other sources told Fox News Digital that another option Trump showed support for was a bill by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., to block federal district court judges from issuing nationwide injunctions.
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