Trump says he would ‘never defy’ SCOTUS, commits to complying with courts despite flurry of legal setbacks

President Donald Trump said in an interview this week that he would “never defy” the Supreme Court and reiterated his respect for the lower district courts, comments that come as his administration tangles with various federal judges and faces accusations of defying their orders. 

Trump made those statements in an interview with Time magazine, published Friday, as he nears his first 100 days in office. The wide-ranging interview hit on a number of topics, including the state of the U.S. economy and Trump’s plans to enact sweeping reciprocal tariffs, which are slated to take force this summer. One of the major themes, however, was the federal courts. 

Trump was pressed several times by Time’s political correspondent, Eric Cortellessa, on his view of the judiciary, and whether he still commits to complying with all Supreme Court orders.

“Sure, I believe in the court system,” Trump responded, adding later: “I never defy the Supreme Court. I wouldn’t do that. I’m a big believer in the Supreme Court, and have a lot of respect for the justices.”

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Trump also said he is committed to competing with the lower courts.

“Sure. All courts,” he said.

The fairly innocuous exchange conceals an otherwise heated debate playing out in courtrooms across the country, as Trump lawyers have gone to bat to defend his early executive orders and halt a wave of lawsuits and emergency restraining orders aimed at blocking or restricting them. 

The biggest fights have been centered on the Trump administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act, a 1798 wartime law, to deport certain migrants to El Salvador. 

Trump’s use of the law has been kicked up to the Supreme Court for emergency review, most recently in the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an alleged MS-13 member living in Maryland who was deported to El Salvador last month. Trump officials have acknowledged his removal was an “administrative error.”

Trump officials have resisted court orders to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S., in what a federal judge in Maryland described this week as a “willful and bad faith refusal to comply with discovery obligations,” including daily updates on his whereabouts and efforts to return him to U.S. soil.

“The Supreme Court ruled 9-0 that you have to bring back [Abrego Garcia]. You haven’t done so,” Cortellessa said, referring to a unanimous decision from the high court this month that ordered Trump to facilitate his release.

“Aren’t you disobeying the Supreme Court?” he asked.

Trump said in response that he had left the matter to his lawyers, including U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. 

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“They feel that the order said something very much different from what you’re saying,” Trump told him. 

“I give them no instructions… frankly, bringing him back and retrying him wouldn’t bother me, but I leave that up to my lawyer.”

Notably, Trump also told the outlet that he has not asked El Salvador President Nayib Bukele to return Abrego Garcia.

Bukele traveled to Washington earlier this month to meet with Trump and other Cabinet officials at the White House. They were asked directly about Abrego Garcia during a short press availability, to which Bondi told reporters it is “up to El Salvador” whether to return him.

Her remarks touched off a wave of fresh concerns and prompted U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis to order an “intense” expedited discovery process for the court to determine whether the U.S. was making good-faith attempts to secure his return. 

Pressed by Time magazine on why he has not made efforts to facilitate the release, or ask Bukele to release him, Trump told the outlet, “Well, because I haven’t been asked to ask him by my attorneys.”

“Nobody asked me to ask him that question, except you,” Trump told Cortellessa.

“But I leave that decision to the lawyers. At this moment, they just don’t want to do that. They say we’re in total compliance with the Supreme Court.”