US District Judge Charles Breyer rejected the Trump administration’s claim that recent protests against immigration authorities amounted to a rebellion that legally justified the extraordinary step of taking federal control of state National Guard units and sending them into the streets.

Breyer also rejected the administration’s claim that courts have no power to review a president’s decision to take control of state National Guard units during an emergency, saying this was an overly expansive view of executive authority.

“The founders designed our government to be a system of checks and balances. Defendants, however, make clear that the only check they want is a blank one,” Breyer said.

The White House did not immediately return a request for comment.

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