PROVIDENCE — Republican lawmakers this week have followed through on their promise to file an impeachment resolution against two judges as the White House and its allies continue escalating attacks on members of the judiciary for blocking President Trump’s funding freezes and other unfettered claims of authority.
Republican Congressmen Andrew Clyde, of Georgia, and Andy Ogles, of Tennessee, filed separate resolutions in the House of Representatives seeking to remove US District Judges John “Jack” McConnell Jr. in Rhode Island and Theodore Chuang in Maryland from office.
McConnell, at the urging of Democratic attorneys general, issued an injunction earlier this month that barred the administration from implementing a sweeping pause on spending on federal grants and loans. The resolution for his impeachment, which was filed by Clyde, alleged that McConnell “politicized and weaponized his judicial position.”
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To remove a judge from the bench is a steep task. According to the Constitution, grounds for impeachment are bribery, treason, and other high crimes and misdemeanors. The House must pass articles of impeachment by a simple majority vote, and the Senate must vote by at least a two-thirds majority.
The resolutions face long-shot odds of ever securing a US Senate conviction of either judge. While Republicans control both chambers in Congress, they do not have two-thirds majority to convict a judge in the Senate. Regardless, McConnell and Chuang have joined a list of six jurists who have ruled against Trump and are facing impeachment resolutions in the House.
Clyde also said McConnell should have recused himself because he has long sat on the board of Crossroads Rhode Island, a local housing and homeless services nonprofit whose funding might be impacted.
McConnell has come under increased criticism by Trump’s allies, including tech billionaire Elon Musk. Nominated by President Barack Obama in 2010, McConnell has served as chief judge since 2019. Karoline Leavitt, the president’s press secretary, also took aim at McConnell, calling him and other judges who blocked Trump’s efforts a “judicial activist rather than honest arbiters of the law” during a briefing at the White House podium in February.
McConnell declined to comment.
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Musk, on social media, has described judges as a threat to democracy.
“The only way to restore rule of the people in America is to impeach judges,” Musk wrote in a post.
Ogles' resolution against Chuang, who was also appointed by Obama, was filed after the judge blocked Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency last week from their efforts to shut down the US Agency for International Development, saying their steps would likely violate the Constitution. USAID is an independent government agency responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance.
Chuang could not be immediately reached for comment.
After Trump called for a judge’s removal last week, US Chief Justice John Roberts released a rare public statement, where he said “impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”
The correct response, Roberts said, is filing an appeal.
Alexa Gagosz can be reached at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.