It’s another day that ends in “y,” which means another Democrat-appointed federal judge is attempting to unilaterally kneecap President Donald Trump’s administration.
On Monday, Christine O’Hearn, a New Jersey-based district court judge, issued a 14-day temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the U.S. Air Force from “initiating involuntary separation proceedings” for two branch members who proclaim to be transgender. The lawsuit from the service members came in response to a Jan. 27 executive order by Trump and subsequent Pentagon directives to effectively develop the process of removing trans-identifying troops from the armed forces.
In granting the request for a TRO, O’Hearn, a Biden appointee, opined that the plaintiffs “demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims that the Orders, at a minimum, violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fifth Amendment.” Equally notable, however, is her complaint that the executive branch — which is constitutionally authorized to dictate U.S. military policy — did not provide her (a lower court judge) “any compelling justification whatsoever” for why it’s implementing the president’s directives regarding trans-identifying troops in the service.
“As discussed above, Plaintiffs face severe personal and professional harm absent a preliminary injunction. In contrast, Defendants have not demonstrated any compelling justification whatsoever for immediate implementation of the Orders, particularly since transgender persons have been openly serving in the military for a number of years,” O’Hearn wrote.
The U.S. Senate confirmed O’Hearn in a 53-44 vote on Oct. 19, 2021. GOP Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joined Democrats in supporting her nomination.
O’Hearn is the second federal district judge to stymie the president’s military “trans” policy with an arbitrary court order. The first came last week in the form of a preliminary injunction from D.C. District Court Judge Ana Reyes, a Biden appointee and major Democrat donor.
O’Hearn’s activism from the bench hardly makes her an anomaly among other rogue lower court judges on board with greenlighting leftists’ lawfare against Trump — and neither does her affinity for Democrat politics.
Follow the Money
Prior to becoming a district court judge, O’Hearn spent the bulk of her legal career working at Brown & Connery LLP, a New Jersey-based private law firm. According to the Biden White House, the then-lawyer’s work primarily “focuse[d] on complex labor and employment litigation.”
It was during her time with Brown & Connery that O’Hearn made numerous donations to New Jersey Democrat Senate campaigns.
Federal Election Commission records show that O’Hearn gave $6,900 to the 2008 campaign of then-Rep. Rob Andrews, who was defeated in that year’s Democrat Senate primary. They also reveal that O’Hearn collectively gave $5,000 to the campaign of now-former Sen. Bob Menendez in 2011.
Menendez was sentenced to 11 years in prison earlier this year, which came several months after he was found guilty on more than a dozen counts of “bribery, extortion, conspiracy and obstruction of justice,” according to Fox News. The outlet noted how the New Jersey Democrat is “the first U.S. senator in American history to be convicted of working as a foreign agent.”
According to a press release from the then-senator’s office, it was Menendez who recommended O’Hearn to the Biden White House as a potential appointee for the U.S District Court of New Jersey. The disgraced Democrat claimed O’Hearn would “serve the people of New Jersey well through her administration of fair and impartial justice.”
It Gets Worse
O’Hearn isn’t the only individual to work for Brown & Connery who’s shelled out money for Democrat politicos, however. According to OpenSecrets, virtually all political donations from the law firm’s employees have gone to Democrat candidates and causes in recent years.
During the 2024 election, for example, 100 percent of Brown & Connery employee donations to federal candidates went to Democrats, while 0 percent went to Republicans. The percentages were the same for the 2022 and 2020 elections.
These figures are unsurprising after perusing Brown & Connery’s website. The law firm boasts an entire page highlighting its commitment to so-called “diversity & inclusion” — buzzwords that are deceptively used by leftists to further advance their radical race and gender ideology.
“Brown & Connery, LLP is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce where the contributions of people of all backgrounds are valued and integrated into the firm. Welcoming and valuing different ideas, perspectives, and experiences enables us to provide innovative legal solutions to our clients’ most complicated challenges,” the firm’s website reads.
Brown & Connery also has a Diversity & Inclusion Committee, which “spearheads” the firm’s “diversity initiatives and includes active leadership involvement, attorneys from various offices and practices groups, and staff.”
The committee’s mission statement is followed by photographs from prior “diversity and inclusion” celebrations at the firm, including a “rainbow day” in which employees dress up in rainbow colors to commemorate “pride month.” Also included is a Brown & Connery’s “Diversity & Inclusion 2021 Year in Review” flyer, which indicates the firm hosted a “Mock Interview Workshop for Rutgers Law School’s Minority Student Program” and an event titled “Female Partners and Associates Brown Back [sic] Lunch: The Woman’s Path to Partnership.”
Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
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