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‘Silence, for me, is now intolerable’: Federal judge in Boston steps down to speak out against Trump
“The White House’s assault on the rule of law is so deeply disturbing to me that I feel compelled to speak out.”
Citing a pressing need to “speak out” against the Trump administration, a federal judge in Boston stepped down from the bench last week to fight what he called an “existential threat to democracy and the rule of law.”
“My reason is simple: I no longer can bear to be restrained by what judges can say publicly or do outside the courtroom,” senior US District Judge Mark L. Wolf explained in an essay in The Atlantic Sunday.
The now-retired Reagan appointee expressed his frustration with President Donald Trump’s use of the law “for partisan purposes,” such as targeting adversaries while shielding friends and donors.
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“This is contrary to everything that I have stood for in my more than 50 years in the Department of Justice and on the bench,” Wolf, 78, wrote. “The White House’s assault on the rule of law is so deeply disturbing to me that I feel compelled to speak out. Silence, for me, is now intolerable.”
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Wolf’s resignation does not create a vacancy for Trump to fill, as he was succeeded by Judge Indira Talwani after stepping back from active service in 2014.
Decades ago, Wolf prosecuted public corruption in Massachusetts as deputy US attorney. Following his appointment to the bench in 1985, he oversaw a bevy of high-profile cases, from hearings that exposed the FBI’s relationship with informants Stephen “The Rifleman” Flemmi and James “Whitey” Bulger to the conviction of former Massachusetts House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi on corruption charges.
Reflecting on a public service career guided by truth and justice, Wolf said he ultimately began to chafe against the limits of his role as Trump and his allies “dismantled so much of what I dedicated my life to.”
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He added: “As I watched in dismay and disgust from my position on the bench, I came to feel deeply uncomfortable operating under the necessary ethical rules that muzzle judges’ public statements and restrict their activities.”
Wolf’s retirement was short-lived; he officially resigned from the bench Friday and quickly announced a new role as senior counsel with Boston-based boutique litigation firm Todd & Weld.
“When I decided to leave the bench it was the only firm I considered joining,” Wolf said in a statement. “I am pleased to have found such a fine partner for my public and private endeavors.”
Writing in The Atlantic, he quoted a 1966 speech from then-Senator Robert F. Kennedy: “Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.”
“I resigned in order to speak out, support litigation, and work with other individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the rule of law and American democracy,” Wolf said. “I also intend to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves.”
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