President Donald Trump just received an astounding rebuke from the legal community that reveals how much worse his second administration is compared to his first, according to two experts. Attorneys Brian Kabateck and Shant Karnikian discussed a recent survey that found 94% of judges and lawyers believe the second Trump administration poses a greater threat to the rule of law than the first in a new episode of their podcast "Civil Action." Karnikian argued that the survey results were "astounding" and showed just how much Trump has eroded faith in America's institutions. "Here we are. It's gotten that much worse," Karnikian said. Trump has seemingly been at war with the federal judiciary since he was inaugurated a second time. He has lashed out against judges who ruled against him, including Supreme Court justices who struck down his signature tariff regime. Trump has also sought to bend the judiciary to his advantage. For instance, Trump settled a lawsuit he filed against the IRS over his previously leaked tax returns, creating a fund that could pay some of his allies. A slew of federal judges have spoken out against the fund, and it currently remains tied up in litigation. Kabateck argued that the Supreme Court has helped Trump in this effort by issuing rulings on its so-called "shadow docket," where the public does not see how the judges rule on specific cases. "People recognize that the shadow docket is a very dangerous precedent in the United States," Kabateck said.
