WASHINGTON—During his first term, Republican President Donald Trump often boasted about the outsized number of conservative judges he placed on the U.S. Supreme Court and federal benches around the country.

His successor, Democrat Joe Biden, managed late in his only term to surpass — by one judge — Trump’s near-record mark of 234 people confirmed to federal courts. Biden, who emphasized appointing more women and people of color, had particular success placing judges on Maryland’s U.S. District Court and the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which oversees Maryland cases.

That’s significant because state Democrats have been banking on those courts to block Trump policies, such as proposals to remove restrictions on ICE raids and end gender-affirming health care for young transgender people and birthright citizenship. Every judge on the 10-member, Maryland-based court was originally selected by a Democratic president.

With Trump-aligned Republicans controlling the U.S. House and Senate, Democrats “really can’t do very much, so they have to rely on the courts,” said University of Richmond law professor Carl Tobias.

“The federal courts are the first line of defense, and it’s true many of these cases have been brought in Maryland,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat who has accused Trump’s administration of repeatedly overstepping its authority in its efforts to downsize the federal government and rewrite its priorities.

When confirmed by the Senate in 2024, former magistrate Adam Abelson became Biden’s sixth nominee on the federal court whose judges are split between courthouses in Baltimore and Greenbelt. Three other judges were named by former Democratic President Barack Obama. The remaining judge, Stephanie Gallagher, was also nominated by Obama and renominated by Trump in 2019 because she was not confirmed during Obama’s administration.

Since Trump began his second term on Jan. 20, Biden’s or Obama’s Maryland-based nominees have:

•Approved a request for a preliminary injunction preventing immigration authorities from conducting raids in certain houses of worship.

•Ordered a second nationwide pause on Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship for anyone born in the U.S. to someone in the country illegally.

•Extended a nationwide block on Trump’s executive orders halting federal funding for providers of gender-affirming health care for transgender people under age 19.

•Blocked an executive order that sought to end government support for programs promoting diversity, equity and inclusion.

Last week, Maryland joined other states in a federal suit filed in the Maryland-based court against a host of U.S. government agencies accusing the Trump administration of illegally laying off federal probationary workers.

While judges’ decisions can’t be foretold based on which president selected them, it can offer hints. “It’s a crude measure,” Tobias said.

In Biden’s first year as president, the White House said in a statement that the federal bench “should reflect the full diversity of the American people — both in background and in professional experience.” His administration’s initial nominees included three Black women picked for U.S. Circuit Court vacancies. More than other presidents, Biden sought to appoint public defenders, legal aid and civil rights attorneys who had been traditionally underrepresented on the federal bench.

Trump’s advocates have publicly called out the judiciary, including a Maryland judge, accusing them of overreaching.

“Another judge for impeachment consideration?” Arizona Republican Rep. Eli Crane posted on X after the DEI decision by Abelson last month.

“Impeach!” posted Elon Musk, the owner of X, a top Trump advisor and advocate who heads the Department of Government Efficiency.

Abelson ruled in the DEI case that Trump’s orders were too vague and contradicted free speech.

“I think it shows incredible disrespect for the rule of law when members of Congress talk about impeaching a judge simply because they disagree with a particular decision,” Van Hollen said. “It shows actually a total disregard for our system of checks and balances.”

Many current Maryland-based federal judges were recommended by Van Hollen and fellow Democrat Ben Cardin, the now-retired former Maryland senator. Under the process, Maryland’s senators typically send lists of potential nominees to the White House, which makes the final call.

“We ask them very straightforward questions about whether or not they would uphold the rule of law,” Van Hollen said

All federal judge nominees require Senate confirmation.

The recent spate of court orders represent only temporary victories for Democrats and others arguing that many of Trump’s moves are illegal.

“These are only very preliminary, temporary steps and say nothing ultimately about the legality, or anything like this, of any of these Trump policies,” said Thomas Jipping, a senior legal fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, which has often been aligned with Trump on issues.

Jipping said Trump opponents are counting on “misperception” — the notion that Trump policies have been reviewed and are being struck down when, in reality, the process is barely underway.

Maryland’s federal court appeals move next to the 4th U.S Circuit Court of Appeals. The court is based in Richmond, Virginia, and hears appeals from federal district courts in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

That court has nine judges nominated by Democrats and six by Republicans.

The final appellate venue is the Supreme Court, which accepts a limited number of cases. Six of the nine justices were appointed by Republican presidents, including three by Trump.

In 2017, the Maryland General Assembly granted then-Attorney General Brian Frosh unilateral authority to sue the federal government. Frosh joined multiple lawsuits against the first Trump administration, which ended in January 2021, and led litigation on others.

The office of Anthony Brown, the current attorney general, said in a statement after Trump’s 2024 election that he would use his authority “to hold the federal government accountable” and is “prepared to act against any federal actions that threaten Marylanders’ rights.”

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