A judge appointed by former President Ronald Reagan resigned last week to protest the presidency of President Donald Trump.
U.S. District Judge Mark L. Wolf of Massachusetts said he gave up the job he wanted to serve in for life because he could “no longer can bear to be restrained by what judges can say publicly or do outside the courtroom.”
“President Donald Trump is using the law for partisan purposes, targeting his adversaries while sparing his friends and donors from investigation, prosecution, and possible punishment,” he wrote in an op-ed for the Atlantic. “This is contrary to everything that I have stood for in my more than 50 years in the Department of Justice and on the bench. The White House’s assault on the rule of law is so deeply disturbing to me that I feel compelled to speak out. Silence, for me, is now intolerable.
Reagan appointed the 78-year-old to the bench in 1985. He noted that Trump cannot replace him because former President Barack Obama already appointed Judge Indira Talwani in 2013 as his successor.
He now plans to do “everything in my power to combat today’s existential threat to democracy and the rule of law.” Wolf said he plans to use his time outside of the court to advocate for judges.
“I resigned in order to speak out, support litigation, and work with other individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the rule of law and American democracy,” Wolf wrote. “I also intend to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves.”
“I cannot be confident that I will make a difference,” Wolf concluded. “I am reminded, however, of what Senator Robert F. Kennedy said in 1966 about ending apartheid in South Africa: ‘Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.’ Enough of these ripples can become a tidal wave.”
Wolf also slammed Trump’s use of executive orders as “unconstitutional or otherwise illegal,” his calls for judges to be impeached, and alleged “corruption by [Trump] and those in his orbit,” among other things.
He blasted the Department of Justice’s prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, later suggesting that prosecutions alone can be damaging to defendants. Wolf worked in the Justice Department, serving as deputy U.S. attorney for the District of Massachusetts and as chief of the department’s Public Corruption Unit in Boston from 1981 to 1985.
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The top judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Chief Judge Denise J. Casper, praised Wolf for his longtime service.
“Judge Wolf has served on this Court with distinction for over four decades,” Casper said in a statement. “His steadfast commitment to the rule of law, determination in wrestling with novel issues of fact and law, and dedication to making fair, equitable, and legally sound decisions without fear or favor are the hallmarks of his time on the bench.”