IV
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION H. RES. 188
Affirming the obligation of the President of the United States to comply
with court orders.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH4, 2025
Mr. M
ULLIN(for himself, Mrs. RAMIREZ, Ms. WILLIAMSof Georgia, Ms. NOR-
TON, Ms. CLARKEof New York, Mr. THOMPSONof Mississippi, Ms.
T
LAIB, Mrs. WATSONCOLEMAN, Mr. THANEDAR, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr.
G
RIJALVA, Mr. SOTO, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. SWALWELL, Mrs. TORRESof
California, Mr. K
HANNA, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mrs. MCIVER, Ms. KELLYof
Illinois, and Mr. G
REENof Texas) submitted the following resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
RESOLUTION
Affirming the obligation of the President of the United
States to comply with court orders.
Whereas the United States District Court for the Western
District of Washington on January 23, 2025, the United
States District Court for the District of Maryland on
February 5, 2025, and the United States District Court
for the District of New Hampshire on February 10,
2025, issued temporary restraining orders to prevent
President of the United States Donald J. Trump from
enforcing or implementing his executive order that would
deny citizenship to individuals born in the United States;
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•HRES 188 IH
Whereas the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit on February 20, 2025, denied an emergency re-
quest to lift an injunction on President Trump’s execu-
tive order that would deny citizenship to individuals born
in the United States;
Whereas the United States District Court for the District of
Columbia on January 28, 2025, and the United States
District Court for the District of Rhode Island on Janu-
ary 31, 2025, and again on February 10, 2025, issued
temporary restraining orders to prevent the Trump ad-
ministration from pausing, freezing, or terminating Fed-
eral funds appropriated by Congress;
Whereas the United States District Court for the Southern
District of New York issued a temporary order on Feb-
ruary 8, 2025, preventing President Trump from grant-
ing access to Treasury Department payment records and
systems to any individual other than civil servants with
a need for access to perform their job duties;
Whereas the United States District Court for the District of
Columbia on February 25, 2025, entered a preliminary
injunction preventing the Office of Management and
Budget from implementing, giving effect to, or rein-
stating a memorandum freezing all federal financial as-
sistance under open awards;
Whereas the United States District Court for the Southern
District of New York on February 21, 2025, granted a
preliminary injunction barring the Treasury Department
from granting any member of the DOGE team access to
payment records, payment systems, or any other data
systems maintained by the Treasury Department;
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•HRES 188 IH
Whereas the United States District Court for the Northern
District of California on February 27, 2025, issued a
temporary restraining order requiring the Office of Per-
sonnel and Management to rescind a directive to termi-
nate employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs,
the National Park Service, the Small Business Adminis-
tration, the Bureau of Land Management, the Depart-
ment of Defense, and the Fish and Wildlife Service;
Whereas, on February 9, 2025, Vice President of the United
States J.D. Vance declared on X: ‘‘Judges aren’t allowed
to control the executive’s legitimate power’’;
Whereas, on February 15, 2025, President Trump declared
on X: ‘‘He who saves his Country does not violate any
Law’’;
Whereas it has been established since 1803 in Marbury v.
Madison that it is ‘‘the province and duty of the judicial
department to say what the law is’’, and it has been fur-
ther established since 1952 in Youngstown Sheet & Tube
Co. v. Sawyer that the President’s power ‘‘must stem ei-
ther from an Act of Congress or from the Constitution’’;
Whereas the United States Constitution, and hundreds of
years of common law tradition, require all persons to
comply with orders issued by duly established courts of
jurisdiction;
Whereas the legal process allows for the opportunity to ap-
peal a decision with which a litigant disagrees;
Whereas the duty to abide by a court order applies equally
to all persons of the United States, including but not lim-
ited to government lawyers, all of whom must practice
law in accordance with federal and state law;
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•HRES 188 IH
Whereas those who defy a court order must be held account-
able by our legal system; and
Whereas failing to comply with court orders puts the rule of
law and the separation of powers established by the Con-
stitution in grave jeopardy: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1
(1) affirms the essential role of the judiciary in 2
upholding checks and balances among the three co-3
equal branches of the United States Government; 4
(2) calls on President Donald J. Trump and his 5
administration to immediately comply with all exist-6
ing court orders and decisions going forward; and 7
(3) affirms the judiciary’s authority to use all 8
of the tools given to it by the Constitution and Con-9
gress to enforce its orders. 10
Æ
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