US Chief Justice John Roberts reprimands Donald Trump

Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court John Roberts has sensationally pushed back against Donald Trump after the US President called for the top federal judge in Washington to be impeached.

US President Donald Trump greets Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts after giving an address to a joint session of Congress on March 4. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump has been sensationally reprimanded by US Chief Justice John G Roberts after the US President launched a stinging attack on the top federal court judge in Washington, James Boasberg, and called for his impeachment.

The rare statement from Justice Roberts came after the President escalated his campaign against the judicial arm of the US government after Judge Boasberg rebuked the administration on Monday for not complying with a verbal order he made to turn planes deporting dangerous Venezuelan gang members back to America.

The judicial pushback against Trump administration decisions escalated on Tuesday, with Judge Theodore Chuang in Maryland also finding that the dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) was likely unconstitutional.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was ordered to stop its work in shutting down the agency and Judge Chuang warned the appointment of Elon Musk to lead the DOGE was likely a violation of the Appointments Clause of the US constitution.

“If a President could escape Appointments Clause scrutiny by having advisers go beyond the traditional role of White House advisers who communicate the President’s priorities to agency heads and instead exercise significant authority throughout the federal government so as to bypass duly appointed Officers, the Appointments Clause would be reduced to nothing more than a technical formality,” he said.

Speaking to Fox News on Tuesday evening, Mr Trump said the administration would appeal and warned that “we have rogue judges that are destroying our country.”

Earlier, Mr Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Tuesday morning to call for Judge Boasberg of the District Court in Washington to be impeached like “many of the Crooked Judges I am forced to appear before”.

This comment prompted the rare intervention from Justice Roberts who declared that “for more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision”.

“The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

The statement from the Chief Justice comes amid heightened fears of a constitutional crisis in America, with concerns growing the administration may increasingly defy the courts as it implements its ambitious political agenda.

Mr Trump told Fox News on Tuesday evening local time that Justice Roberts “didn’t mention my name in the statement” and that many others had called for the impeachment of Judge Boasberg.

He also provided an assurance that he would not defy a court order in the future, saying that “you can’t do that.” However, he continued to describe Judge Boasberg as a “lunatic.”

“We have very bad judges. We have very bad judges,” Mr Trump said. “And these are judges that shouldn’t be allowed. I think at a certain point you have to start looking at what you do when you have a rogue judge.”

After deporting 261 dangerous non citizens to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 over the weekend, Mr Trump said on Tuesday morning that he was only doing what he was elected to do by the American people.

The Truth Social post from Mr Trump reinforced arguments made by his administration on Monday contending that Judge Boasberg lacked the jurisdiction to interfere with the President’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport dangerous non-citizens.

The US President declared that Judge Boasberg did not win the election or have a mandate to interfere with his decisions.

“This Radical Left Lunatic of a Judge, a troublemaker and agitator who was sadly appointed by Barack Hussein Obama, was not elected President - He didn’t WIN the popular VOTE (by a lot!), he didn’t WIN ALL SEVEN SWING STATES, he didn’t WIN 2,750 to 525 Counties, HE DIDN’T WIN ANYTHING!” Mr Trump said.

“I WON FOR MANY REASONS, IN AN OVERWHELMING MANDATE, BUT FIGHTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION MAY HAVE BEEN THE NUMBER ONE REASON FOR THIS HISTORIC VICTORY.”

“I’m just doing what the VOTERS wanted me to do. This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!! WE DON’T WANT VICIOUS, VIOLENT, AND DEMENTED CRIMINALS, MANY OF THEM DERANGED MURDERERS, IN OUR COUNTRY. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”

Chief Justice Roberts has been seen as a conservative influence over the bench and was appointed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court by George W Bush in 2005.