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Trump's least-favourite judge Boasberg assigned to signal chat leak lawsuit

Trump's least-favourite judge Boasberg assigned to signal chat leak lawsuit

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World: American Oversight filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director Ratcliffe and Marco Rubio.

US District Court Judge James Boasberg has been assigned to oversee a lawsuit filed against members of President Donald Trump's cabinet who were involved in the chat group with a journalist, discussing secret war plans against Houthi on Signal app.

American Oversight, the non-profit organisation, and a watchdog group filed a lawsuit against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“The Federal Records Act requires federal officials to preserve communications related to official government business,” the nonprofit American Oversight wrote in the lawsuit, obtained by the Daily Beast.

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The case has been assigned to President Donald Trump’s least-favorite judge, James Boasberg on Wednesday morning, according to court documents.

The case has been randomly assigned to Boasberg, who serves on the US District Court for Washington, DC.

However, it gathered criticism from other Senators as Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., condemned "rogue judges" like Boasberg in a statement to Fox News Digital.

"These judges have proven they care more about unlawfully knee-capping President Trump's agenda than accurately applying the facts to the law in each individual case. Congress can change that," he said.

Moreover, the lawsuit by American Oversight notes that Signal group chats can be set up to delete messages after a certain time threshold, leading to the possibility that certain records were illegally destroyed.

Why is he MAGA's least favourite?

Boasberg has come under the limelight recently after he rejected the Trump administration’s request to dismiss a previous order he had issued barring the administration from deporting immigrants under one of Trump’s executive orders.

The Judge also suggested that the administration may have violated his order by sending migrants to El Salvador despite the ruling.

Earlier this month, Trump called for the impeachment of Chief Judge James Boasberg, who leads the federal court in Washington, DC.

Boasberg ruled in favour of Democracy Forward and the ACLU, who had challenged the deportations. In his decision, he said the removals could cause "irreparable" harm.

His order temporarily prevented Trump from using the Alien Enemies Act for deportations until a proper hearing could be conducted.

This is not the first time Boasberg has clashed with Trump’s circle. He previously served on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA Court), which approved surveillance of certain members of Trump’s 2016 campaign, a decision that drew criticism from Trump’s supporters.

(With inputs from agencies)

About the Author

Mansi Arora

Ardent geopolitical news writer with a keen eye for global affairs. With passion for illuminating the complexities of global dynamics, Mansi explores her interests by delivering ne...Read More