In federal courthouses across the country Thursday, President Donald Trump’s administration faced a series of legal setbacks to implementing the president’s agenda.
On issues ranging from education policy and voting rights to congestion pricing, the series of rulings and developments marked the latest legal setbacks for an administration battling nearly 200 lawsuits in court.
Three separate judges — including two appointed by Trump — blocked the government from withholding federal funds to schools with DEI programs.
President Donald Trump waits for the arrival of Norway’s Prime Minister Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere at the White House in Washington, April 24, 2025.
Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
In California, a federal judge barred the Trump administration from cutting off federal funding to so-called sanctuary jurisdictions where local police refuse to help with enforcement of federal immigration policy.
After Trump attempted to reshape elections with an executive order last month, a federal judge blocked the government from requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote, saying only Congress has the power to institute such a change.
On immigration issues, the Trump administration is in hot water with multiple judges. A Boston judge is probing whether the Trump administration violated a court order when it removed four alleged members of Tren de Aragua to El Salvador, and a judge in Maryland appointed by the president ordered Wednesday the return of a man deported to El Salvador whose deportation violated a court settlement.
In New York, DOJ lawyers accidentally revealed an internal document acknowledging the shortcomings in their plan to kill congestion pricing.
Friday is set to bring a new legal issue to the forefront, with a federal judge in Boston taking up whether the Trump administration’s attempts to dismantle the Department of Education are lawful. The hearing will mark the first time a federal judge has considered the issue since Trump issued an executive order last month directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take steps to shrink the department.
