Trump Celebrates Supreme Court Decision Limiting Lower Courts' Power

President Donald Trump praised the Supreme Court's ruling that restricts lower courts from issuing nationwide injunctions—a mechanism that had previously blocked some of his executive orders.

Speaking at a press conference just over an hour after the decision was announced, Trump called the move a check on a "colossal abuse of power."

"I was elected with a historic mandate, but in recent months, we've seen a handful of radical left-wing judges trying to override the legitimate powers of the president, denying the American people the policies they voted for in record numbers," Trump said on Friday.

Thanks to the ruling, the Justice Department will now be able to "quickly move forward with numerous policies that were wrongfully blocked on a nationwide basis," the president stated.

Ruling Limits Injunctions but Does Not Rule on Birthright Citizenship Order

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that lower courts may only issue injunctions in limited cases. However, the decision does not clarify how the new standard will apply to Trump’s order restricting birthright citizenship—the central issue in the case.

The Court reviewed three consolidated cases involving nationwide injunctions issued by federal judges in Maryland, Massachusetts, and Washington. These rulings had previously blocked Trump’s birthright citizenship policy nationwide, which the administration argued was an overreach.

The May hearings focused little on the merits of universal injunctions, and the Court made clear it was not ruling on the constitutionality of the birthright citizenship order.

Trump Praises Conservative Majority; Jackson Warns of Constitutional Risk

Trump singled out Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who authored the majority opinion, calling her reasoning "brilliant," and also commended Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, Clarence Thomas, and Chief Justice John Roberts for joining the majority.

Barrett stated that the ruling did not assess whether Trump’s order violated the Constitution but rather whether courts have the authority to issue nationwide injunctions. "A universal injunction can only be justified as an exercise of equitable authority, yet Congress has not granted federal courts such power," she wrote.

In dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson accused the majority of allowing the president to "violate the Constitution" and warned of an "existential threat to the rule of law."