2 months ago
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PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: Far-left U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg says he has found probable cause to hold the Trump administration in contempt for not returning deportation planes to the U.S. as ordered.
👥 Who’s Involved: The Trump administration, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung, and the Justice Department (DOJ).
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📍 Where & When: Deportations to El Salvador in March; the court order was announced on Wednesday, April 16.
💬 Key Quote: “The Court ultimately determines that the Government’s actions on that day demonstrate a willful disregard for its Order,” stated Judge Boasberg.
⚠️ Impact: The administration is instructed to file declarations or face potential prosecution. However, President Donald J. Trump holds the power to pardon people in federal contempt cases.
IN FULL:
Far-left U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg says he has found probable cause to hold the Trump administration in contempt over its alleged failure to comply with his court order requiring planes carrying illegal immigrants to El Salvador to turn around and return to the United States. The federal judge accuses the Trump White House of acting with “willful disregard” toward his March 15 order, which temporarily halted all deportation flights under the Alien Enemies Act.
Despite Boasberg’s contention, the Trump administration argues the judge’s order came too late to turn around two planes carrying 261 illegal immigrants—including over 100 Venezuelan gang members—to El Salvador, where they are being housed in the country’s high-security CECOT prison facility. In a 48-page determination, the judge lays out his dubious criticism of the government for its actions and outlines steps for the administration to avoid prosecution.
Boasberg demands the Department of Justice (DOJ) submit additional declarations by April 23 to explain the circumstances surrounding non-compliance or face potential prosecution. “The Court ultimately determines that the Government’s actions on that day demonstrate a willful disregard for its Order, sufficient for the Court to conclude that probable cause exists to find the Government in criminal contempt,” the judge writes. Boasberg continued, explaining that if the DOJ does not explain why the court should not proceed with contempt charges, he will ask federal prosecutors to identify administration officials responsible for what he calls “contumacious conduct.”
“The Court does not reach such conclusion lightly or hastily; indeed, it has given Defendants ample opportunity to rectify or explain their actions,” the Barack Obama-appointed judge concluded while declaring that the government’s responses so far have been unsatisfactory to the court.
In response, the White House swiftly announced plans to seek appellate relief. “We plan to seek immediate appellate relief,” Steven Cheung, White House Communications Director, announced in a post on X (formerly Twitter). He added: “The President is 100% committed to ensuring that terrorists and criminal illegal migrants are no longer a threat to Americans and their communities across the country.”
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: New York’s Democrat Attorney General Letitia James is investigating whether President Donald J. Trump’s tariff pause facilitated insider trading by administration officials or another individual who may have been informed ahead of the April 9 announcement. James’s latest lawfare efforts come as she faces a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) over allegations of mortgage fraud uncovered by Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
👥 Who’s Involved: President Trump, Letitia James, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Bill Pulte, and Democrat Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Adam Schiff, and Ruben Gallego.
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📍 Where & When: The investigation was confirmed on April 16, 2025, prompted by a series of U.S. market trades before the tariff pause.
💬 Key Quote: “It’s entirely appropriate to have an investigation to make sure that Donald Trump, Donald Trump’s family, Donald Trump’s inner circle didn’t get advance information and trade on that information,” said Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
⚠️ Impact: Democrats in the Senate are running cover for James’s latest law effort against Trump.
IN FULL:
New York’s Democrat Attorney General, Letitia James, is launching a new lawfare campaign against President Donald J. Trump, insinuating potential insider trading instances linked to the White House’s recent pause of reciprocal tariffs. Confirmed to be underway on April 16, the New York AG’s inquiry purports to determine whether Trump or his associates had prior knowledge of the tariff actions, which preceded a significant upturn in the stock market. However, there is mounting speculation that James’s investigation of Trump is meant to distract from her own criminal referral to the Department of Justice (DOJ) over allegations of mortgage fraud.
President Trump’s announcement of the tariff pause, to allow bilateral trade negotiations with over 70 nations to take place, was preceded just hours before by two posts on Truth Social where the America First leader stated, “BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well. The USA will be bigger and better than ever before” and “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT.” The subsequent surge in the financial markets—with several trades logged just before the pause was announced—make up the core of the newest allegations underpinning the lawfare effort.
Speaking with Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union earlier this week, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) appeared to have foreknowledge of Letitia James’s investigation. “It’s entirely appropriate to have an investigation to make sure that Donald Trump, Donald Trump’s family, Donald Trump’s inner circle, didn’t get advance information and trade on that information,” the Massachusetts Democrat said. How Trump could engage in insider trading on a decision and announcement that he would make is unclear.
Closer examination reveals James’s inquiry—and the justifications for it provided by a number of Democrat lawmakers—is little more than partisan gamesmanship. Ignored by James is the fact that rumors of a potential pause had circulated on social media platforms for days prior to the announcement—with the “Walter Bloomberg” X (formerly Twitter) account posting that a pause was under consideration by Trump on Monday, April 7. However, following a swift White House denial, the post was deleted.
Additionally, the two Trump posts on Truth Social on the morning of April 9 could easily be interpreted as an indication that the White House would announce changes to the imposition of trade tariffs, which any observant investor would have responded to by making options trades. Further, because Truth Social is widely accessible, the posts are considered public information and, therefore, could not constitute the secretive exchange of information typically associated with insider trading. The fact is that options traders frequently make bets on short-term market shifts, and the trades on April 9 could easily have occurred without any foreknowledge—though the social media buzz and Trump’s Truth Social posts could have influenced the moves.
The Trump White House is correctly dismissing Senate Democrat allegations and the New York Attorney General’s inquiry as little more than partisan lawfare rather than substantive legal accusations of malpractice. For Letitia James, though, the confirmation of her investigation into Trump and the tariff pause may serve an ulterior purpose—namely, distracting from her own criminal referral to the DOJ on allegations made by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte that the New York Attorney General engaged in several instances of mortgage fraud. James has dismissed the allegations, ironically accusing the Trump administration of weaponizing the government against her.
In 2024, Letitia James and the New York Attorney General’s office were behind several lawfare actions targeting Trump to derail his presidential re-election bid. However, those efforts proved unsuccessful, with Trump winning the election in a landslide.
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