Trump won in spectacular fashion. Now the war is on.
And a federal judge has gone barking mad with this decision after Trump’s resounding win.
A federal appeals judge has stirred controversy with his decision to reverse his planned retirement, preventing President-elect Trump from appointing his successor. Judge James Wynn, an Obama appointee to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, announced on Friday that he would continue in his position after initially planning to retire, a move that has drawn criticism from Republican lawmakers.
In a letter to President Biden, Wynn stated, “I write to advise that, after careful consideration, I have decided to continue in regular active service as a United States Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit.” He expressed regret for “any inconvenience” caused by the reversal, yet his decision has been met with strong opposition from various political figures. Wynn’s name has been removed from the list of upcoming judicial vacancies compiled by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, signaling that his retirement will not take place as previously expected.
The timing of Wynn’s decision is notable, as it follows the withdrawal of North Carolina Solicitor General Ryan Park’s nomination. Park had been Biden’s intended replacement for the seat, but his nomination was stymied after Senate Republicans invoked a procedural agreement allowing Biden’s district court nominees to move forward without Republican obstruction. This maneuver, according to Reuters, effectively blocked any further attempts to fill judicial vacancies until the new Congress convenes.
Judge James Wynn Jr. becomes the first appeals court judge to rescind his senior status declaration after lawmakers made a deal in Nov to advance Biden’s district court nominees in exchange for holding four of his appeals court nominees, including Wynn’s replacement: Ryan Y. Park pic.twitter.com/KA083nwqkU
— Tobi Raji (@tobiaraji) December 15, 2024
Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) was quick to criticize Wynn’s reversal, calling the decision “brazenly partisan” and accusing the judge of being politically motivated. Tillis suggested that Wynn’s actions exemplify a troubling trend where some judges appear to operate as “nothing more than politicians in robes.” He also took issue with Wynn’s apparent displeasure over President Trump’s election and claimed that the judge’s decision represented a “slap in the face” to the U.S. Senate, which had agreed to hold off on confirming Wynn’s replacement until the new Congress is sworn in next month.
Tillis went further, proposing that the Senate Judiciary Committee should hold a hearing to investigate Wynn’s conduct, and warned that ethics complaints and recusal demands would likely follow. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) echoed this sentiment, calling Wynn’s actions deserving of “significant ethics complaints” and “serial recusal demands,” which he asserted would be imminent.
Wynn’s reversal is not an isolated incident. Other judges, such as U.S. District Judges Max Cogburn of North Carolina and Algenon Marbley of Ohio, have similarly decided to rescind their retirement plans following the 2024 presidential election. While the motives behind these decisions remain unclear, they contribute to the growing perception that some members of the judiciary may be influenced by political considerations, further fueling concerns about impartiality in the judicial system.
– Judge James Wynn of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court rescinds his retirement decision.
– Wynn is the 3rd judge to reverse retirement post-November election.
– His decision prevents GOP senators from confirming a replacement before January. pic.twitter.com/0n6nMctoRu— Kyle Peter (@realkylepeter) December 15, 2024
Is The Judicial Branch Overly Politicized?
This situation raises serious questions about the intersection of politics and the judiciary, with critics asserting that judges, especially those with long tenures, should be more mindful of how their decisions are perceived by the public. In this case, Judge Wynn’s decision not only has delayed the opportunity for President Trump to make a judicial appointment but also raises concerns about the role of political dynamics in shaping judicial tenure and retirement decisions.
After Donald Trump’s win, the Democrat Party and the entire political Left is terrified about how much more Donald Trump will be able to reshape the Judicial branch of the United States by nominating more judges to be confirmed to benches all across the United States.
Of course, it’s even possible that Donald Trump could earn more U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominations on top of the three he made during his first term in office when Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Barrett were added to the High Court’s numbers a few short years ago. This, in particular, has those on the Left terrified.
Immediately after Donald Trump’s win, some radical Left pundits and commentators started to call for the resignation of the elder liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor out of fear that Donald Trump could replace her and flip her seat as well. That would give the U.S. Supreme Court bench a 7-2 conservative majority, which the conservatives have not seen in a very long time.
SONIA SOTOMAYOR RESIGN NOW https://t.co/Vj56dNa3dx
— Armand Domalewski (@ArmandDoma) November 14, 2024
In response to the calls for her resignation, Sotomayor has disappointed the radical Leftists by saying that she has no intentions of resigning for any reason anytime soon. Her office has shared with reporters that she’s in perfectly good health and has no reason to resign other than political ones.
“This is no time to lose her important voice on the court,” an ally of Sotomayor shared with reporters anonymously. “She’s in great health, and the court needs her now more than ever,” they added in a statement shared with CNN reporters.
It’s clear that the Left is just trying to avoid the consequences of Donald Trump winning another term in office. A part of those consequences includes the reality that Donald Trump will get to make judicial nominations that they may not agree with. That’s how the system works. If they wanted to be the ones in control of another potential U.S. Supreme Court pick, maybe they shouldn’t have nuked their odds of winning a Presidential election by lying about Joe Biden’s health and then scrambling, fumbling into a laughable Kamala Harris candidacy.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
