The Department of Justice Has Filed a Misconduct Complaint Against Judge James Boasberg

Throughout Donald Trump's second term in office, he's found many of his priorities halted by judges at various levels. While Conservatives have claimed that the judiciary is intentionally opposing this president's agenda, those who are critical of Trump have argued that the reason his administration has been stymied to such an extent by federal courts is that he is acting in defiance of the law and the Constitution.

One judge who has been the particular focus of Trump's ire is U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg. Boasberg has been battling with the administration for months over Trump's policy of deporting people to El Salvador. Now, his Department of Justice has filed a misconduct complaint against Boasberg. Here's what we know about why.

The DOJ complaint, which was filed by Attorney General Pam Bondi's chief of staff Chad Mizelle at her direction, alleges that Boasberg made "improper public comments about President Trump and his Administration."

Specifically, the complaint cites Boasberg's appearance at a Judicial Conference of the United States on March 11 in which he warned that the Trump administration could "disregard rulings of federal courts" and trigger a "constitutional crisis."

Mizelle also cited Boasberg's handling of the administration's deportation of individuals that it claimed were a part of the gang Tren de Aragua to a prison in El Salvador. Boasberg ordered that planes containing those deportees be turned around and then held hearings in which he questioned whether the administration was truly committed to the rule of law.

"Throughout the proceedings, Judge Boasberg rushed the government through complex litigation, sometimes giving the Trump Administration less than 48 hours to respond and threatening criminal-contempt proceedings and the appointment of an outside prosecutor against senior Trump Administration officials for failing to comply with an order that had already been vacated," the complaint states.

This misconduct complaint is unlikely to lead to Boasberg's removal from the bench, as he can only be removed via impeachment, which would require a two-thirds majority in the Senate.

While Boasberg has undeniably said harsh things about the Trump administration, he would likely argue that those statements were warranted by the behavior of those around the president.

"Defendants provide no convincing reason to avoid the conclusion that appears obvious from the above factual recitation: that they deliberately flouted this court's written order and, separately, its oral command that explicitly delineated what compliance entailed," he wrote in an April opinion, suggesting that the administration was deliberately trying to flout his order to bring those who were sent to El Salvador home.

For his part, the president has publicly complained about Boasberg and his decisions, arguing that he was "crooked" and should be impeached.