...
By Sean O'Driscoll
Senior Crime and Courts Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Republican members of Congress are seeking to impeach a judge who ordered health agencies to stop deleting "gender ideology" information.
Why It Matters
Some Republicans are trying to remove any judge who halts President Donald Trump's executive orders. That raises many legal questions about the independence of the federal judiciary in the Trump era.
Read More
Pam Bondi Reacts to Elon Musk Calling for ‘Wave of Judicial Impeachments’4 min read
Elon Musk Handed Win by Judge He Wanted Impeached6 min read
Chlamydia Outbreak Warning Issued After Trump Removes STD Info4 min read
Newsweek sought email comment on Tuesday from the Office of Personnel Management, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Judge John Bates.
...
What To Know
On January 29, 2025, Trump's Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a memorandum to all agencies titled "Initial Guidance Regarding President Trump's Executive Order Defending Women." It ordered all agencies to "take down all outward facing media (websites, social media accounts, etc.) that inculcate or promote gender ideology," and "ensure that all applicable agency policies and documents, including forms, use the term 'sex' and not 'gender.'"
In response, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) removed large numbers of webpages and datasets that used the word "gender" instead of "sex."
On February 4, a medical group named Doctors for America filed an 18-page lawsuit over the Trump administration's removal from the CDC and FDA websites of "a broad range of health-related data and other information used every day by health professionals to diagnose and treat patients and by researchers to advance public health."
On February 11, Washington D.C. federal Judge John Bates, a George W. Bush appointee, agreed to impose a temporary restraining order on the CDC and FDA and ordered that any deleted webpages be restored.
On February 24, Tennessee Republican Congressman Andy Ogles introduced an impeachment resolution against Bates.
The article of impeachment states that Bates' ruling was "so utterly lacking in intellectual honesty and basic integrity that he is guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors."
This is a reference to Article II, Section 4 of the U.S. Constitution, which states that "all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."
What People Are Saying
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday, Congressman Andy Ogles wrote: "I just formally introduced articles of impeachment against RADICAL LGBTQ ACTIVIST U.S. District Judge John Bates. His attempt to block President Trump's order to remove webpages containing resources for 'gender-affirming care' from government sites is appalling.
"At no point in American history has the judiciary considered the surgical or chemical castration of healthy children to be a compelling or even legitimate health concern and it shouldn't start now."
What Happens Next
In impeachment proceedings, the House of Representatives votes by simple majority on whether to impeach.
Republicans have a very slim majority in the House. Even if that was enough to impeach, it would then transfer to the Senate, which "sits as a High Court of Impeachment to consider evidence, hear witnesses, and vote to acquit or convict the impeached official," according to the Senate website.
"The Constitution requires a two-thirds vote of the Senate to convict, and the penalty for an impeached official upon conviction is removal from office."
As Republicans have only a 53-to-47 voting majority in the Senate, the impeachment attempt is almost certain to fail.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines