White House Issues Memo Pushing Back Against Activist Judges Who Block Spending Cuts

President Donald Trump issued a memorandum Wednesday directing federal agencies to enforce a rule requiring plaintiffs who seek injunctions against the federal government to post security covering potential costs and damages in cases where an injunction is later overturned.

The directive, addressed to executive departments and agencies, cites concerns over what Trump described as “activist organizations” leveraging the legal system to obstruct government policies. He argued that these groups, often backed by large donations and, in some cases, government grants, have obtained sweeping injunctions that interfere with executive policymaking and delay policies backed by voters.

“This anti-democratic takeover is orchestrated by forum-shopping organizations that repeatedly bring meritless suits, used for fundraising and political grandstanding, without any repercussions when they fail,” Trump wrote in the memo. He asserted that such legal maneuvers force the Department of Justice to divert resources from public safety efforts to battle “frivolous suits.”

The White House memo is a strategic effort to combat recent decisions by judges that have created roadblocks to Trump’s efforts to reduce the size, scope, and cost of federal government.

The memo calls for strict enforcement of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(c), which mandates that any party seeking a preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order must provide financial security to cover damages incurred if the injunction is later deemed to have been wrongly issued. Trump’s directive instructs agencies, in consultation with the Attorney General, to ensure that federal courts are petitioned to require plaintiffs to post security in such cases.

The move could raise the cost of the lawfare tactics that have slowed the Trump administration’s effort to rein in profligate spending and the unchecked power of unelected bureaucrats.

“Consistent enforcement of this rule is critical to ensuring that taxpayers do not foot the bill for costs or damages caused by wrongly issued preliminary relief by activist judges and to achieving the effective administration of justice,” the memo states.

The directive outlines specific requirements for security requests, including a “reasoned assessment” of potential damages to the federal government and a mandate that failure to comply with Rule 65(c) should result in the denial or dissolution of the requested relief.