Sen. John Kennedy on Sunday gave an on-brand, quirky response to concerns that President Donald Trump is defying court orders.
“Do you believe that President Trump is following the orders of the courts right now?” NBC News’ Kristen Welker asked the Republican from Louisiana on “Meet the Press.”
“Yes, and I don’t believe that President Trump will defy a federal judge’s order. If he does, I’ll call him out on it,” he said. “I love the rule of law. I love it like the devil loves sin.”
Several times in recent months, the Trump administration has appeared to defy court orders, such as chartering deportation flights despite a judge telling them not to; refusing to give the Associated Press access to cover events despite a judge ruling against the White House; and not bringing Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland father who has legal protection from deportation to El Salvador, back to the U.S. after it deported him there.
The Trump administration has defended its actions, in some cases arguing a court issuing an order lacked jurisdiction. In the Abrego Garcia case, however, the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in, unanimously affirming a lower court ruling that ordered the administration to “facilitate” his return to the U.S. But the administration is still claiming its hands are tied — and is now arguing the courts have no power over the case because it involves the presidential power of conducting foreign affairs.
These clashes are testing the entire constitutional order, with some judges weighing holding the administration in criminal contempt for defying their directives. That option is complicated because the federal courts rely on the Department of Justice to enforce criminal contempts, and the attorney general, Pam Bondi, has made it clear that she does not think the DOJ has independence from the White House.
For his part, Kennedy, a consistent Trump ally, argued that the courts must be obeyed, but he didn’t think the president was rejecting their orders:
“If we start not following federal judicial orders, we undermine the system entirely. Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t criticize them. You can criticize them. You can appeal them. But you can’t choose to not follow them,” Kennedy said. “And I haven’t seen President Trump do that. If he does, I’ll say very loudly and clearly that I think he’s wrong.”
