Left Fabricates a New ‘Crisis’ — But Vance is Correct on Legal Matters

On Saturday, US District Judge Paul Engelmayer, who was appointed by Obama, issued a ruling that prevents “political appointees” from accessing internal Treasury Department systems — a decision that can only be described as groundless and absurd.

Essentially, Engelmayer’s ruling obstructs Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and his accountable staff, along with figures like Elon Musk and the leaders of President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, from performing their duties, thereby favoring the rule of unelected bureaucrats.

The judiciary is not granted the authority to make such rulings in the Constitution, prompting Vice President JD Vance to rightfully express on X: “Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power.”

This statement sent the left into a frenzy.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker claimed Vance’s tweet was an indication that “the Trump administration intends to break the law.”

Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) argued it represented the “core” of a “constitutional crisis.”

Additionally, former GOP congresswoman from Wyoming, Liz Cheney, accused the vice president of “rage quit[ting] the Republic.”

Despite the outrage, Vance’s assertion holds true — it should not be viewed as contentious: Engelmayer’s order is nonsensical and Vance accurately points out the limitations of judicial authority.

The Supreme Court has long affirmed that certain governmental actions fall outside the judiciary’s purview, validating Vance’s stance.

As recently stated in Trump v. United States, it declared that “when the President exercises his exclusive constitutional powers, Congress cannot — as a structural matter — regulate such actions, and courts cannot review them.”

In his tweet, Vance provided a hypothetical scenario illustrating a judicial overreach into executive authority: “If a judge attempted to dictate to the attorney general how to exercise her prosecutorial discretion, that’s . . . illegal.”

Not long ago, the Biden administration concurred with his view.

In a 2022 brief to the Supreme Court, Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar referenced the court’s ruling in Heckler v. Chaney, stating that the “decision of a prosecutor in the Executive Branch not to indict” is “a decision which has long been regarded as the special province of the Executive Branch.”

Furthermore, in its 2020 Seila Law decision, the Supreme Court clarified that political appointees, such as the Treasury secretary, “wield significant authority” yet remain accountable as they are “subject to the ongoing supervision and control of the elected President.”

In contrast, the ruling emphasized that our constitutional framework is endangered when “significant governmental power” is granted to individuals “neither elected by the people nor meaningfully controlled . . . by someone who is.”

Engelmayer’s ruling effectively subverts our constitutional order.

Given the lack of constitutional justification for Engelmayer’s order, more reasoned voices have sided with Vance.

Jed Rubenfeld, a professor at Yale Law School, described Vance’s tweet as “exactly right.”

This raises the question: Why is the Democratic Party in such an uproar over a social media post?

Liz Cheney, Chris Murphy, and JB Pritzker are not novices when it comes to prosecutorial discretion, the separation of powers, or limitations on judicial power.

However, they do have a vested interest in fabricating a supposed “constitutional crisis” early in Trump’s second term.

Their objective is to undermine the White House’s policy initiatives and stifle the momentum of his presidency following his significant victory in November.

Media outlets sympathetic to their cause are readily helping.

Once the “constitutional crisis” narrative was introduced, leftist media amplified it.

The New York Times ran an article with the headline: “Trump’s Actions Have Created a Constitutional Crisis, Scholars Say.” on Monday.

That same day, The Washington Post posed the question: “What is a constitutional crisis?”

This is not an isolated incident.

Back in 2016 and 2017, the mainstream media, the Democratic Party, and elements of the deep state collaborated to fabricate the Russia-collusion narrative.

The Democratic Party authored the narrative, and the mainstream media acted it out.

However, just like the collusion story was a farce, the current “constitutional crisis” is equally unfounded.

According to the American left, any time the president and his appointees are permitted to operate the Executive Branch, the Constitution is in jeopardy.

During 2016, the rallying cry of the “resistance” leftists and their mainstream media allies was “Russian collusion.”

Now, we are onto their strategy, as the resistance liberals chant a new mantra: “constitutional crisis.”

Don’t be misled. 

President Trump and his political appointees, like Treasury Secretary Bessent, are acting within the authority granted to them by American voters.

Engelmayer’s order lacks any constitutional foundation, regardless of the “crisis” narrative the left seeks to propagate.

Theo Wold, former solicitor general of Idaho and former acting-assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice, directs the Claremont Institute’s Administrative State Project.