Judge James Boasberg came under fire once again when conservatives called him out for living in one of the richest neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., and taking a massive salary from the federal government, which even prompted Elon Musk to chime in with his thoughts on the judge.
For context, Judge Boasberg has been railing against the Trump Administration since March 2025 in response to the deportation of alleged gang members to Venezuela. The Judge responded with fierce criticism to the Trump Administration’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act as the grounds for the deportations, leading to a tense standoff between Judge Boasberg and the Justice Department starting on March 19, 2025.
On March 20, 2025, Paul Sperry, a senior reporter for the conservative news outlet Real Clear Investigations, made a post on X that started a round of Boasberg backlash. Sperry wrote, “On a $247,000 federal salary, property records show Judge Boasberg lives in a $2.4 million house in one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in D.C.” In response, Elon Musk simply replied, “Interesting.”
According to coverage from Newsweek, Sperry’s post on X got some major pushback from leftists, with former Washington Post Live editor Lois Romano reported as saying, “1. That’s NOT one of the most prestigious neighborhoods. 2. He purchased the house 30 years ago when he was in private practice, and his wife was a Stanford MBA consultant. 3. They paid $500K for it. 4. You’ve embarrassed yourself with your ignorance.”
However, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt also had critical comments to make about Boasberg in a press conference on March 19, 2025. Leavitt reportedly described Judge Boasberg as “a Democrat activist,” adding, “He was appointed by Barack Obama.” She continued, saying that Boasberg has “confidently shown his disdain for this president and his policies, and it’s unacceptable.”
Adding to the criticism of Boasberg, Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly described the judge as “trying to protect terrorists who invaded our country over American citizens.” Commenting further on Boasberg’s actions, AG Bondi said, “An unelected district court yet again invaded the policy-making and free speech prerogatives of the executive branch.”
In addition, coverage from The New York Post launched a savage takedown of Boasberg and his family in an April 4, 2025, story, with the paper’s editorial team writing, “His daughter, Katharine Boasberg, works at a pro-crime nonprofit called Partners for Justice, which receives millions in taxpayer bucks and is headed by a leftist opponent of the Laken Riley Act (i.e., someone who wants more [assault] and murder by border-jumpers, not less.”
"*" indicates required fields
At the time of this writing, Judge Boasberg’s ruling has not stopped the deportation of the alleged gang members, but the DOJ is reportedly fed up with Boasberg wasting its time. Drew Ensign, a Justice Department lawyer, told The Washington Times that “The district court’s criminal contempt order invites needless constitutional confrontation.”
Watch coverage of Boasberg’s battle with the Trump Administration:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video