GOP-appointed judges call out Trump for increased 'threats and intimidation'

GOP-appointed judges are calling out the Trump administration for increased threats against them, according to USA Today columnistChris Brennan.

The remarks came during a House Judiciary hearing to increase funding for their security. Many Republicans pushed back on the judges – even though judicial security funding “has been flat in the past two federal fiscal year, despite a growing number of threats against judges,” Brennan said.

“The independence of the judicial branch is jeopardized when judges are threatened with harm or impeachment for their rulings," Judge Robert Conrad Jr., who was appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush, warned. "Our constitutional system depends on judges who can make decisions free from threats and intimidation."

Conrad Jr. was appointed as director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts in 2024.

He, along with Judge Amy St. Eve, called out the threats of impeachment coming from several GOP members.

"The threat environment facing judges and the judiciary as a whole right now is particularly dynamic and worrisome," said St. Eve, who was appointed by Trump in 2018 to the 7th Circut Court of Appeals.

According to Brennan, “The federal judiciary's $9.4 billion budget request for fiscal year 2026, which starts on Oct. 1, includes $892 million for security, a 19% increase of $142 million after no increases in fiscal years 2024 and 2025.”

The columnist called out Republicans on the committee who “offer cheap, empty rhetoric” as the judges are asking for increased security.

Congressman Chip Roy (R-TX) “played the blame-the-victim game” Brennan said, when Punchbowl News pressed him on the issue.

“Maybe they should stop screwing everything up,” Roy told the outlet.

Brennan also paraphrased Congressman Michael Michael Cloud (R-TX) comments about the request. Claiming the Congressman said, “the real danger came from judges like St. Eve, Conrad and Roberts linking the politically motivated calls for impeachment to the increase in threats to judges across the country.”

The columnist then called on all Americans to “provide for the safety of judges so they can uphold our laws.”