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Political persecution and rule of law

Attacks on the judiciary, weaponization of the DOJ, retaliation against law firms, security clearance revocations, and obstruction of international justice.

8 records · Last updated March 26, 2026

These records document the erosion of judicial independence and the weaponization of government power against political opponents and accountability mechanisms.

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Updated March 26, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing Reported record

ICC Immunity Demands: Ultimatum to Amend Rome Statute and Exempt Americans from War Crimes Prosecution

A systematic campaign to destroy the International Criminal Court's ability to hold Americans accountable for war crimes, combining unprecedented sanctions on judges with demands to rewrite the Rome Statute itself. The campaign goes far beyond any previous US opposition to the ICC, seeking not merely non-cooperation but the permanent restructuring of international criminal justice.

  • On February 6, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14203 imposing sanctions on the ICC, blocking property of the Chief Prosecutor and authorizing designation of anyone who assists the court's investigations of US or allied personnel.
  • The administration demanded three conditions: the ICC must guarantee it will not investigate Trump or his top officials, drop investigations into Israeli leaders over the Gaza war, and formally end the probe into US troops in Afghanistan.
  • The US demanded Rome Statute member states amend the founding treaty to prohibit prosecutions of citizens of non-signatory states — effectively granting permanent blanket immunity to Americans and Israelis.
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ICCRome Statutesanctionsimmunity
Updated March 25, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing Judicial finding

Systematic Attacks on Judicial Independence and Defiance of Court Orders

A pattern of court order defiance, threats against judges, calls for impeachment, and DOJ Civil Rights Division gutting that constitutional scholars describe as the most serious executive-judicial confrontation since at least Watergate.

  • The administration continued deportation flights after Judge Boasberg ordered them stopped, leading to a finding of probable cause for criminal contempt.
  • Trump called for the impeachment of Judge Boasberg, prompting a rare rebuke from Chief Justice Roberts.
  • The administration defied approximately one-third of major court orders against it as of July 2025.
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8
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judicial independencecourt orderscontemptseparation of powers
Updated March 25, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Judicial finding

Executive Orders Targeting Law Firms Representing Trump's Opponents

Unprecedented use of executive orders to punish four law firms for representing clients adverse to the president. All four orders were struck down as unconstitutional violations of the First, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments. The campaign chilled legal representation and coerced at least nine other firms into compliance deals.

  • Trump issued four executive orders targeting Perkins Coie (March 6), WilmerHale (March 27), Jenner & Block (March 25), and Susman Godfrey (April 9) — each revoking security clearances, barring employee access to federal buildings, and directing federal agencies to cancel contracts with the firms.
  • Each firm was targeted for specific past legal work adverse to Trump: Perkins Coie for representing the Clinton campaign, WilmerHale for employing Robert Mueller, Jenner & Block for employing Andrew Weissmann, and Susman Godfrey for representing Dominion Voting Systems against Fox News.
  • All four executive orders were struck down by federal judges as unconstitutional violations of the First Amendment (speech and association), Fifth Amendment (due process), and Sixth Amendment (right to counsel). One judge called the Jenner & Block order a 'screed.'
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8
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law firmsFirst Amendmentright to counselexecutive orders
Updated March 25, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing Judicial finding

Weaponization of the Department of Justice: Retaliatory Investigations and Prosecutions

Systematic weaponization of the DOJ through a retaliatory investigations unit, indictments of political opponents that were dismissed as brought by an unlawfully appointed prosecutor, mass departure of career prosecutors, and dismantlement of the Civil Rights Division and Public Integrity Section.

  • Trump appointed Ed Martin — a former Missouri party chair who promoted election fraud claims and defended January 6 rioters — to lead a DOJ 'Weaponization Working Group' tasked with investigating officials who had investigated Trump.
  • Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted September 25, 2025, and New York AG Letitia James was indicted October 9, 2025. Both indictments were dismissed on November 24, 2025 by Judge Currie, who found prosecutor Lindsey Halligan — a former Trump defense lawyer — was unlawfully appointed. Two subsequent grand juries declined to reindict James.
  • Over 100 DOJ prosecutors and career lawyers resigned since Trump took office, far exceeding normal turnover, with many citing political interference, pressure to drop cases involving Trump allies, and threats of retaliation for refusing unethical orders.
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7
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DOJ weaponizationretaliatory prosecutionLetitia JamesJames Comey
Updated March 25, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing Active litigation

Weaponization of Security Clearances for Political Retaliation

A systematic campaign of security clearance revocations targeting political opponents, critics, and former officials who investigated or prosecuted Trump, including 51 intelligence officials, prosecutors, state attorneys general, and even an entire private cybersecurity company — constituting an unprecedented use of classification authority for political punishment.

  • On January 20, 2025, Trump revoked security clearances of 51 former intelligence officials who signed a 2020 letter stating the Hunter Biden laptop story had 'earmarks of a Russian information operation,' including former DNI James Clapper, former CIA Directors John Brennan and Michael Hayden, and former SecDef Leon Panetta.
  • On March 22, 2025, a second executive order revoked clearances from former officials including Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and individuals involved in the first Trump impeachment — Fiona Hill, Alexander Vindman, and Norm Eisen.
  • New York AG Letitia James and Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg — who brought criminal and civil cases against Trump — had their clearances revoked in what legal experts described as punishing state officials for lawful law enforcement activity.
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6
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security clearancespolitical retaliationintelligence communityChris Krebs
Updated March 25, 2026 Corruption & Self-Dealing
Major Abuse of Power Ongoing Official executive action

Systematic Pardons of Political Allies and Financial Criminals — $1.3 Billion in Victim Restitution Erased

A systematic pattern of pardons benefiting political allies, donors, and financial criminals. Over half of 88 clemency grants went to white-collar offenders, erasing $1.3 billion in victim restitution. Twenty corrupt politicians were pardoned. The DOJ's Public Integrity Section — responsible for investigating corruption — has been largely dismantled, and the head of the Pardon Attorney's office was fired and replaced with a political loyalist.

  • More than half of 88 individual pardons through January 2026 went to people convicted of white-collar crimes — money laundering, bank fraud, wire fraud, and tax evasion are among the most frequent offenses pardoned.
  • House Judiciary Democrats calculated that Trump's pardons erased $1.3 billion in victim repayment and taxpayer recovery for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, and other financial crimes.
  • At least 23 pardoned individuals owed over $100,000 each in fines or restitution, totaling over $298 million.
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8
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pardonscorruptionwhite-collar crimepolitical allies
Updated January 15, 2026 Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Ongoing Active litigation

Executive Order Sanctioning International Criminal Court Officials

The administration imposed escalating sanctions on ICC officials -- including judges and prosecutors -- for investigating US citizens and allies, obstructing international criminal accountability and drawing broad condemnation from the UN and international legal community.

  • EO 14203 authorized visa restrictions and financial penalties against ICC officials investigating US citizens or allies, specifically Israel.
  • Sanctions were progressively expanded from prosecutor Karim Khan to four ICC judges and eventually 11 officials by December 2025.
  • The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights demanded withdrawal of sanctions against ICC judges.
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6
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ICCinternational justicesanctionsRome Statute
Rule of Law
Serious Rights Violation Official executive action

Blanket Clemency for January 6 Defendants, Including Violent Offenders

Trump used his first day back in office to grant sweeping clemency to January 6 defendants, including people convicted of violent attacks on police and leaders of groups convicted of seditious conspiracy.

  • The clemency action covered most January 6 defendants on Trump's first day back in office.
  • It extended to violent offenders and leaders of groups convicted of seditious conspiracy.
  • The publication's concern is about accountability and normalization of political violence, not the facial availability of the pardon power itself.
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clemencyJanuary 6political violencerule of law