Unprecedented Legal Battles: How Trump's Second Term Reshaped Presidential Power (#140CharPodcastTitle)

President Donald Trump faces an unprecedented legal landscape as he enters his second term in office. According to a Just Security litigation tracker, there are currently 549 cases challenging Trump administration actions, with 235 cases awaiting court rulings, 94 temporarily blocked, and 48 fully blocked by courts.

The Supreme Court is set to make definitive rulings on several cases that could fundamentally reshape presidential power. In Trump v. Cook, arriving January 21st, the justices will decide whether the president can fire Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve Board despite a federal law protecting her 14-year term. The court is also weighing the president's authority to impose tariffs under emergency powers and whether he can overturn a 90-year-old precedent protecting federal agency independence from presidential interference.

Lower courts have proven active in blocking administration policies. According to Politico reporting tracked by Just Security, over 225 judges have ruled in more than 700 cases that the administration's mandatory immigration detention policy likely violates due process rights. Courts have also temporarily blocked executive orders targeting law firms including Perkins Coie and Wilmer Cutler Pickering, which the president accused of undermining democracy and justice.

Civil liberties cases are mounting. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission faces litigation over executive orders against major law firms, with judges granting temporary restraining orders protecting these firms from implementation. The American Bar Association sued after the administration terminated all of its grants, alleging retaliation for positions the administration disfavored. Massachusetts brought suit challenging an executive order banning gender-affirming care for minors under 19.

A House resolution introduced in April 2025 impeaches the president on seven counts including obstruction of justice, usurpation of Congress's appropriations power, abuse of trade powers, violation of First Amendment rights, bribery and corruption, and tyranny.

The Justice Department is also pursuing what Democrats characterize as a retribution campaign. According to reporting on the cases, the department is seeking to revive charges against a former FBI director and a New York attorney general whose indictments were previously dismissed.

Beyond Trump-specific cases, the Supreme Court is considering broader election matters including a Louisiana redistricting appeal that could significantly weaken the Voting Rights Act, and cases addressing presidential power over federal agencies and tariff authority. Democracy Docket reports the conservative-leaning court is expected to issue final rulings on some of the president's most controversial policies in 2026.

The legal terrain ahead will substantially determine the scope of presidential authority. The outcomes could reshape the balance between executive power, congressional authority, and judicial oversight for years to come.

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