AG filed 36 suits vs. WH
Critics say it’s to boost her profile
Attorney General Maura Healey has filed or taken part in no fewer than 36 lawsuits against the Trump administration in the past two years, in a move critics say is aimed at boosting her own profile.
The lengthy list of lawsuits targets issues from immigration and education to health care and the environment, with many of them ongoing. Healey characterizes her actions as protecting the people of Massachusetts, but political pundits say it serves a personal agenda to obtain higher office by gaining national exposure.
“President Trump and his administration have repeatedly acted to harm the people of Massachusetts and our interests,” Healey said. “As Attorney General, it is my job to protect our families, consumers, students, businesses, and residents from his illegal and unconstitutional actions, and I’ll continue to do that.”
Republican consultant Ryan Williams said there’s “no question” that Healey is eyeing higher office and that this is a tactic to get her there.
“These lawsuits are an opportunity for the attorney general to grandstand, to try to score political points with the liberal base in Massachusetts and across the country,” Williams said.
Democratic consultant Scott Ferson countered that while this type of action “certainly” gets her national exposure and that virtually every politician is seeking higher office, it’s not simply to grandstand as an attorney general.
“She needs legal substance behind her actions,” Ferson said.
The AG’s office did not provide a breakdown of how much staff time has been devoted to Trump-related lawsuits. When asked, the office responded that no additional staff has been brought on to do Trump-related litigation alone.
When asked about the suits in a WCVB interview that aired Sunday, Healey responded, “People are going to keep asking and commenting, I’ll leave it to media. I’ll leave it to the pundits.”
Since Trump took office, Healey has sued over all three versions of the administration’s travel ban, which the courts struck down, sued over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, filed a lawsuit to stop the federal government from enforcing a new rule that would authorize any employer to block their employees from receiving contraceptive care through health insurance and sued to prevent the repeal of net neutrality protections.
“This administration has undermined many of our key economic sectors, like clean energy, health care, and tech, and attacked our basic values of equality and fairness,” Healey said in her statement.