Rachel Maddow

Just in the last few hours tonight, a federal judge in Minnesota, a Trump appointee, has issued an order holding the administration in contempt for disobeying a court order in an immigration case.

A federal judge finding that the federal government is in contempt, that is notable and unusual enough, but this is the second time the Trump administration has been found in contempt in the space of a week.

Just a few days ago, another federal judge in Minnesota held a DOJ prosecutor in contempt

In a different immigration case, she actually ordered the prosecutor to pay a $500 daily fine until the Justice Department started complying with her orders in that case.

which they finally did the next day.

That sort of thing has a way of getting their attention.

But this is becoming a theme, and I think this is really important.

Everybody said at the outset of Trump's second term that it would be a bright red line in terms of a slide into authoritarian rule in this country if the Trump administration started defying orders from the courts, right?

You remember all those discussions?

Well, the Trump administration is now routinely and frequently defying orders from judges.

specifically on cases relating to immigrants.

And the courts have not only figured out that that's happening, the courts have now decided to stand up and fight for themselves.

We've seen the chief judge in Minnesota compile a list of nearly 100 violations of court orders

in immigration cases just in that state.

In New Jersey, the Trump Justice Department was just forced to apologize in court for violating more than 50 orders from federal judges in immigration cases.

They were essentially pleading to not be held in contempt in that state as well.

Another DOJ prosecutor also had to apologize to a judge in Virginia

This time, the judge had rebuked the Justice Department for keeping relevant information from him when they sought a search warrant for the search of a home of a Washington Post reporter.

In another case in West Virginia before a judge named Joseph Goodwin last week, this is a case where masked ICE agents arrested a man and jailed him without a bond hearing.

Judge Goodwin wrote this.