Investigate Trump’s politically motivated purge of immigration judges

As your constituent, I am asking you to speak out against the Trump administration’s ongoing purge of immigration judges and to defend the basic idea of fair, independent courts. As of today, December 6, 2025, reporting based on data from the National Association of Immigration Judges shows that at least 98 of roughly 700 immigration judges have been dismissed this year. So far in 2025, EOIR has lost more than 141 judges from an original corps of about 700 through firings or forced departures, with at least 70 explicitly fired or not converted after probation. In San Francisco, 12 of 21 judges, or 57 percent of the bench, have been removed in less than a year, mostly judges who granted asylum at very high rates. Earlier this week, eight judges in New York City were fired in a single day with no reason given in their termination emails. This pattern tells every remaining judge that if their decisions displease the White House, their job is at risk, no matter what the law or facts require. These firings are already harming the people and communities the courts are supposed to serve. Immigration courts are part of the Justice Department, not Article III, and already face more than 3 million pending cases nationwide. Some courts now have up to 46,000 cases per judge, and hearing dates that run as far out as 2030. When experienced judges are removed mid-stream and dockets are handed to a shrinking bench, cases are delayed, records are reopened, and families wait even longer in limbo. In San Francisco alone, the backlog has grown to roughly 120,000 cases, and grant rates for asylum are dropping after many of the most experienced judges were pushed out. An August 2025 DOJ memo warning judges about “statistically improbable outcome metrics,” combined with a recruiting ad for new “deportation judges,” makes it hard to escape the conclusion that outcomes are being driven toward political targets rather than neutral application of the law. That is a direct threat to due process and to the Fifth Amendment rights that protect citizens and non-citizens alike. Americans in both parties should be able to agree on this: no president of either party should be allowed to rewrite the law by firing judges until they get the numbers they want. I am asking you to publicly oppose the ongoing purge of immigration judges, to call hearings on the criteria and process for these removals, and to press DOJ to halt further firings that are not grounded in documented misconduct or clear performance standards. I also urge you to support bipartisan proposals to create an independent Article I immigration court and to strengthen statutory protections so that immigration judges can only be removed for cause, not for their grant rates. Protecting the independence of these courts is not about being “for” or “against” immigration. It is about whether our government still respects checks and balances, due process, and the promise that everyone in this country gets a fair hearing before an impartial judge.