在美国迎来建国 250 周年的节点上，一群由约 30 名联邦和州法官组成的“Justice in Motion"组织正在俄亥俄、宾夕法尼亚及密歇根等铁锈带地区开展巡回活动 [1]。该行动旨在通过让法官走出法庭向民众解释其角色来重建公众对法院的信任，并直接回应特朗普政府多次攻击司法系统、无视裁决以及加剧政治极化的背景 [1]。
组织者指出，面对针对法官的威胁激增及公众信任度下降的现状，法官们必须采取行动以对抗错误信息 [1]。根据美国法警局报告的数据，截至 9 月的政府财政年度内，针对联邦法官的威胁数量达到 564 起，较前一年的 509 起有所上升 [1]。“我不希望说我们已步入无法无天的时代，但有时确实如此感觉。”Victoria Roberts 如是表示 [1]。Timothy Lewis 则警告称，法治正面临来自规范持续崩塌的“生存威胁”[1]。
Michael Donnelly 回顾历史时说道：“回首过往，我们在边缘摇摆不定；此刻是我们决定重新灌输‘这是一个法律之国而非人治之国’信念的时刻。”[1] Maureen O'Connor 强调，“司法的生命线在于公众信心”，并指出若失去这种信任，“想要找回将非常困难”[1]。此次行动还得到了前宾夕法尼亚州州长 Tom Corbett 等人的参与支持 [1]。
As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary of founding, a group of retired federal and state judges launched an outreach tour across Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan [1]. Organized under the banner "Justice in Motion," the initiative aims to defend judicial independence and rebuild public trust in the courts [1]. The campaign responds to repeated attacks on the judiciary by the Trump administration, which has been accused of ignoring court rulings and exacerbating political polarization [1].
Facing a surge in threats against judges and declining public confidence, organizers argue that sitting outside the courtroom is necessary to counter misinformation and explain the role of the courts to citizens [1]. According to data from the U.S. Marshals Service cited by AP News, there were 564 threats made against federal judges during the fiscal year ending in September, an increase from 509 in the previous year [1].
Michael Donnelly noted that while history shows periods of instability ("we have teetered"), this moment offers a chance to restore faith in being "a country of laws and not of men" [1]. Victoria Roberts expressed concern that although it would be inaccurate to declare an era of lawlessness, the situation often feels that way [1]. Timothy Lewis described the rule of law as facing an "existential threat" stemming from a breakdown of norms [1]. Maureen O'Connor emphasized that public confidence is the lifeblood of the judiciary and warned that losing such trust makes it very difficult to regain [1]. The tour includes approximately 30 judges, comprising retired federal judges, current federal judges, and state judges, alongside former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett [1].