Justices give Trump a win on federal worker speech crackdown

Source: Courthouse News Service

May 26, 2026


WASHINGTON (CN) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday shut down a challenge to a Trump administration policy preventing Department of Justice personnel from speaking publicly about their views on immigration. Last year, an appeals court revived a challenge from immigration judges — U.S. attorney general-appointed attorneys who preside over deportation cases — after President Donald Trump sought to wrest control over federal employee governance.

But the Supreme Court said the Fourth Circuit overstepped, violating the rules of party presentation by ruling on issues outside of the dispute in front of them.

“That principle — the ‘rule that points not argued will not be considered’ — distinguishes our adversarial system of justice from an inquisitorial one,” the court wrote in a per curiam opinion. “Because courts are ‘essentially passive instruments of government,’ we rely on the parties to ‘frame the issues for decision’ and decide ‘only the questions presented.’”

Unlike judges or justices under the judicial branch, immigration judges are governed by the executive branch and make decisions according to administrative policies. As such, they operate as federal employees subject to the president’s policies instead of impartial arbiters of the law.

Read more: https://courthousenews.com/justices-give-trump-a-win-on-federal-worker-speech-crackdown/