More than 100 members of the Wyoming State Bar, including former Gov. Mike Sullivan and four former state supreme court justices, in a Wednesday letter are calling on Wyoming’s congressional delegation to denounce recent verbal attacks made on America’s judges.
These criticisms have come as a result of judicial decisions President Donald Trump’s administration doesn’t agree with.
Former Wyoming Attorneys General Gay Woodhouse and Pat Crank, and former House Speaker Tom Lubnau also signed the letter that was sent to U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, and Rep. Harriet Hageman.
Similar letters from Wyoming attorneys were sent to Hageman in 2022, condemning her for denying the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The letter sent Wednesday draws a comparison between the two topics, seeing both as related to the spread of disinformation.
“We understand there is an appetite among sizeable members of the electorate for radical change at any cost, but the growing reckless disdain for the independence and security of our judiciary must be resisted by anyone sworn to uphold our Constitution,” the letter reads. “That includes us, and it certainly includes you. Silence in the face of such threats from those with a duty to uphold the Constitution will be properly seen as complicity.”
Barrasso told Cowboy State Daily violence against judges and other public officials is never acceptable, mentioning how he drafted legislation to increase security to protect state and local judges and their staff.
But he also believes the judges’ rulings against the Trump administration have been made unjustly.
“Americans are right to be outraged by the recent onslaught of activist district judges abusing their power to try to stop the Trump administration’s agenda,” Barrasso said. “When partisan, unelected district court judges try to micromanage the President of the United States, it isn’t judicial review. It isn’t checks and balances. It is purely partisan politics — and it is wrong.”
A spokesperson for Lummis said she is reviewing the letter but strongly disagrees with its premise "and wishes they had expressed their concerns privately with us before going on a press blitz."
Hageman didn't respond to Cowboy State Daily’s request for comment on the letter by publication time.
What’s It About?
Trump and members of his staff have blasted recent federal court rulings that have curbed their ability to perform certain actions they want to make, such as deporting alleged illegal immigrant gang members and firing thousands of federal employees.
Elon Musk has called these court rulings “illegal,” “corrupt,” “radical” and “evil,” and described the rulings as “an attempted coup of American democracy by radical left activists posing as judges!”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed the federal judges are “abusing their power” and that a “real constitutional crisis” is taking place in the judicial branch.
Although none of the judges targeted are from Wyoming or have any known Wyoming connections, former Teton County District Court judge Tim Day, one of the letter signees, said it’s still important for legal minds from the state to speak up.
“It doesn’t matter what the forum is, when attempts are made to exert political influence of judges, whether it’s a federal judge or a state judge, it creates a real threat to the independence of the judiciary,” Day said. “They’re supposed to hold up the constitution, not respond to political whims of the time.”
Cody resident Rebecca Watson, former assistant secretary of land and minerals management with the U.S. Department of Interior, who also signed the letter, mentioned how lawyers are required to swear an oath to uphold the U.S. and Wyoming constitutions.
The Wyoming Code of Professional Ethics says it is a lawyer's public duty to “further the public’s understanding of and confidence in the rule of law and justice system because legal institutions in a constitutional democracy depend on public participation and support to maintain their authority.”
Separation Of Powers
When a federal judge determined in February that the Trump administration must resume U.S. foreign aid payments that had been halted, Musk and other allies of the president called for the judge’s removal.
“When judges egregiously undermine the democratic will of the people, they must be fired,” Musk posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Woodhouse told Cowboy State Daily she believes the judicial branch needs to be actively defended against this kind of rhetoric.
“I have such a strong belief in the separation of powers and I believe in the power of the judiciary,” Woodhouse said. “We need to let our delegation know this is a serious problem so that we don’t lose our branch or their branch as well.”
The Trump administration has also issued executive orders against prominent national law firms it believes has treated conservatives unfairly in the past.
The Wyoming attorneys and judges don’t take kindly to these comments and actions.
“These attacks are part of a growing effort to discredit not just judges, but seemingly the American rule of law as we know it,” the Wyoming letter reads.
Although no members of the Trump administration have publicly called for violence to be committed against the judges, some members of the public have gone so far on social media as calling for a judge to be beheaded and asking, “Why so few judges are hanged?”
“Certain people who follow President Trump are capable of acts of violence against people,” Woodhouse said. “I’m afraid it might incite acts of violence against judges when they impeach a judges character for no other reason that they ruled against them. Words have power, especially when their words issued by the president, they have particular power.”
Former Wyoming Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Golden explained in a statement that the judicial branch lacks the executive and legislative branch’s power to defend itself.
“It does not have its own social media platform,” Golden said in a statement. “Sitting judges are not permitted to publicly discuss their decisions. We are speaking out as one and strenuously urging our congressional delegation to do the same, because the threats are serious and our sitting judges cannot defend themselves.”
Last year, U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts said there has been a “dramatic increase” in the number of threats of violence against judges, which threatens the independence of the federal judiciary.
Following Trump’s most recent calls for a judge, who the president described as a “radical left lunatic of a judge,” to be impeached, Roberts issued a public statement saying that impeachment isn’t the appropriate response to a disagreement about a judicial decision.
“The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose,” Roberts wrote.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
