This story was originally published by Public News Service.
By Roz Brown, producer
Public News Service
June 5, 2025
A government watchdog group is joining others in raising concerns about last-minute additions to the budget reconciliation bill passed by the House of Representatives and now before the Senate. The Campaign Legal Center says one provision would weaken the power of U.S. judges to enforce contempt when the government defies court orders. It comes after federal courts have thwarted some of President Donald Trump’s recent policies.
Trevor Potter, Campaign Legal Center president, said the “Founding Fathers” were trying to prevent a president from behaving like a”king” when they established three separate but equal branches of government.
“What’s happened here is that members of the Republican party in Congress think their job is, or their duty is, to support the presidency whatever they do and not act as a check on the presidency,” he explained.
Trump has repeatedly attacked judges who oppose his policies and his administration has refused to abide by their orders – even those issued by the U.S. Supreme Court. Potter believes the White House is trying to expand and consolidate executive powers over Congress and the courts – which he says poses major risks to American democracy and the rule of law.
A second provision inserted in the bill at the last minute has raised the ire of both Democrats and Republicans. It includes a 10-yearmoratorium on state and local governments to regulate the use of artificial intelligence in political campaigns and elections.
Catherine Hinckley Kelley, senior director, Policy & Strategic Partnerships with the Campaign Legal Center, said 20 states, including New Mexico, already have adopted such laws.
“States have acted, but now with this provision in the reconciliation bill, states would be unable to enforce those laws and limit the use of AI in elections,” she explained.
Congress has not passed its own A-I regulation bill. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA, a fierce supporter of President Trump, said Tuesday she would not have voted for the bill if she had known about the A-I provision, contending it would violate state rights.
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