Ex-Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy says ‘freedom is at risk’ amid attacks on judges ruling against Trump

Former Judge of the United States Supreme Court, Anthony Kennedy warned Thursday that the tone of political speech and threats to judges undermine the ability of the United States to serve as an example of freedom and democracy in the world.

Kennedy, a person appointed by Reagan who retired in 2018 in the first term of President Donald Trump, spoke up during a virtual threat forum for the StatementWhile he defended the role of judges in a democracy and pleaded for the need to protect them and their families against threats.

“Many in the rest of the world turn to the United States to see what democracy is to see what democracy should be,” Kennedy said at the event “Talking for justice”, one day before the current Supreme Court The judges should make their final decisions of the current term.

“If they see a hostile and fraities, if they see a discourse that uses identity policy rather than talking about problems, democracy is in danger. Freedom is in danger,” he continued.

Booker, Cruz Spar on threats to American judges in the exchange of the fiery Senate

Kennedy did not mention Trump, even if other participants have expressed themselves by the dams and attacks against judges to block key parties of the president’s political agenda during his second mandate, including his immigration policies, federal workers’ layoffs and his implementation of general prices.

But Kennedy’s remarks seemed to be triggered, at least in part, by the Trump administration Repeated attacks against the judges who reigned against him, some of which he appointed during his first mandate.

In March, Trump criticized the judge of the American district court James Boasberg as a “radical lunatic” and called for his dismissal after trying to block the administration to withdraw the alleged members of the United States Venezuelan gangs under the law on extraterrestrial enemies, a presidential power of the war invoked by Trump.

Last month, Trump attacked the “hateful” judges in the United States as “monsters who want our country to go to hell”.

Trump’s rhetoric has reached an increase in threats to judges, according to Politico, although the administration spokesperson said that the president was against any threat and that they are being prosecuted for the Ministry of Justice.

Kennedy said that “judges must have protection for themselves and their families” and that “judges are better protected when the public and our nation realize how central they are for our speech”.

“We have to worry in this country, as I have already indicated, the tone of our political speech,” he said. “Identity policy is used so that a person is characterized by his partisan affiliation. This is not what democracy and civil speech speak.”

Other participants in the forum, who presented judges from the United States and other countries that warned the way attacks on the courts can threaten democracies, also targeted Trump’s declaration denouncing the courts.

Without mentioning Trump by name, the American district judge Esther Salas, whose son was killed by a disgruntled lawyer who went to his home in New Jersey in 2020, said that disinformation on the judges spread “from top to bottom”, with jurists attacked as “thugs” and “corrupt”.

Chief judge Roberts doubles on the defense of the courts while Scotus is preparing to hear the key cases of Trump

“The judges are Rogue. It seems familiar? The judges are corrupt. Does that seem familiar? The judges are monsters. … The judges hate America,” said Salas. “We see the spread of disinformation from the summit.”

Click here to obtain the Fox News app

Salas warned that the number of threats recorded against the judges this year reached historic heights in the United States, noting that the US Marshals service has followed more than 400 threats against judges since January, when Trump was inaugurated.

“We are going to break records, people and not in the right direction,” she said.

Reuters contributed to this report.