Judge fighting Trump over El Salvador deportations assigned to lawsuit over Signal chat leak

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg was assigned to oversee a lawsuit filed by American Oversight against the Trump administration, alleging violations of the Federal Records Act. The suit claims Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other officials, including Tulsi Gabbard, John Ratcliffe, Scott Bessent, and Marco Rubio, improperly used Signal to discuss Houthi strike plans, potentially deleting records via the app’s auto-delete feature. This follows Boasberg’s prior ruling halting Trump’s deportation of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, prompting administration defiance and criticism from figures like Sen. Josh Hawley and Rep. Darrell Issa, who decry his “bias” and nationwide injunctions. Legal analyst Andrew Cherkasky called the assignment “provocative,” citing Boasberg’s ongoing review by the D.C. Circuit Court. Former Trump attorney Alina Habba labeled it “judicial advocacy.” The White House denies that any classified information was shared.