Judge Strikes Biden DOJ’s ‘Burdensome’ Bully Tactics Against Opponents Of Trans Surgeries For Kids

A federal judge in Alabama quashed the invasive subpoena the Biden administration served on the conservative Eagle Forum and Southeast Law Institute, holding the material sought from the nonprofits fell outside the scope of discovery relevant to the Department of Justice’s lawsuit challenging Alabama’s law banning chemical and surgical transgender experimentation on minors. Monday’s victory proves Americans can fight back against the Biden administration’s weaponizing of the DOJ. 

The Department of Justice had subpoenaed the Eagle Forum and Southeast Law Institute in August, demanding all materials related to the nonprofits’ support of the Alabama Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act (VCAP). Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey had signed VCAP into law on April 8, 2022, with the legislation banning puberty blockers, wrong-sex hormones, or surgical procedures performed on minors “if the practice is performed for the purpose of attempting to alter the appearance of or affirm the minor’s perception of his or her gender or sex, if that appearance or perception is inconsistent with the minor’s sex.” 

Less than two weeks later, in Eknes-Tucker v. Marshall, four transgender-identifying children, their parents, and several others sued the governor of Alabama and other state officials, challenging the constitutionality of VCAP. The plaintiffs in the Eknes-Tucker case argued that VCAP violates the constitutional right of parents to obtain medical treatment for their children and the equal-protection rights of transgender minors. The Biden administration quickly joined the lawsuit as a plaintiff, asserting the same equal-protection argument as the children. 

In May, federal Judge Liles Burke, a Donald Trump appointee, granted the plaintiffs a preliminary injunction, keeping the statute from going into effect pending resolution of the case. Alabama appealed the court’s injunction to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and a hearing is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 14, 2022.

In the meantime, however, the Department of Justice moved forward with discovery, serving at least two nonprofit groups, the Eagle Forum and the Southeast Law Institute, with invasive subpoenas demanding that the organizations provide the federal government with documents related to their efforts to push for passage of the VCAP, including communications with their members and state legislators. In total, the Biden administration sought 11 broad categories of material, spanning from Jan. 1, 2017, through the present day. 

The Eagle Forum and the Southeast Law Institute — neither of which were parties to the lawsuit — filed motions to quash the DOJ’s subpoenas, arguing that none of the requested material was relevant to the question of the constitutionality of the VCAP, that subpoenas infringe on their First Amendment rights, and that compliance with the subpoenas would be unduly burdensome to the nonprofit organizations, which lack the staff and resources necessary to pull the requested documents.

On Monday, Judge Burke — the same judge who had enjoined enforcement of the statute — granted the motions to quash, finding the requested information outside the scoop of discovery.

“The subpoenas command Eagle Forum and Southeast Law Institute to produce eleven broad categories of evidence, ranging from draft legislation, to