For months, the Department of Justice has been squandering its goodwill with the judiciary. This is no small matter. Anyone who litigates against the federal government will tell you that one of the great challenges is overcoming judges’ natural inclination to give government lawyers the benefit of the doubt.

If a DOJ lawyer says they need more time, they almost always get it. If they assert a fact as true, it's almost reflexively believed. It’s a thumb on the scale that, in close cases, can affect the outcome.

Over the last three months, the Trump administration has done everything in its power to erase this advantage. Government lawyers have presented incorrect information, offered pretextual excuses and repeatedly acted in bad faith. Worse still, they’ve been rude to judges, insulting in response to rulings and dismissive of their ethical obligation of candor to the court.

The first lesson any litigator learns — or should learn — is that you will never win a fight with a judge. In the end, they wear the black robes, hold the gavel and have the power to affect your and your clients’ futures. There’s a reason you stand when they enter the room and call them “Your Honor.”

It was only a matter of time before this behavior caught up with them. This week, it did.

For several weeks, the government has openly defied court orders related to deporting migrants to a notorious prison in El Salvador. One case involved Venezuelan migrants whose plane was en route to El Salvador when a federal judge ordered it returned to the U.S. The government ignored that order.

Another case involved the transfer of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia…

You’re reading a sample of what's included in our premium membership — on Fridays, Marc revisits the week’s top stories with his personal insights on where these developments might lead. Today, Marc dives into:

• Mounting evidence that multiple federal judges may hold the government in contempt
  
  
• Why the Trump administration can’t even win over Reagan-appointed judges 
  
  
• The biggest warning sign yet on the erosion of due process rights for American citizens
  
  
• Who Trump will target in his next round of executive orders