The Constitution Won't Cover Poor People Anymore
Buried in Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” is a rule that could make emergency court orders worthless.. especially when poor people are the ones begging for help.
Imagine this: A mom finds out her son is about to be deported even though his case is still working its way through the courts. A judge agrees it shouldn’t happen yet, because it violates his constitutional right to due process, and issues an emergency order to pause the deportation.
If the mother didn’t pay a “security bond” when she asked for that order, something courts sometimes require, the judge’s order might not actually be enforceable. This deposit is usually waived for low-income or non-profit organizations.
Here’s why that matters: if ICE goes ahead and deports her son anyway, the judge wouldn’t be allowed to punish them for breaking the order. The court couldn’t fine them. It couldn’t hold them in contempt. It couldn’t spend any money, any staff time, any legal resources. doing anything about it.
In simple terms: the order still exists on paper, but it’s powerless. No consequences, no accountability, no protection.
This isn’t a dystopian novel. This is Section 70302 of the One Big Beautiful Bill, the bill the House just passed.
Let’s break it down:
SEC. 70302. RESTRICTION OF FUNDS.
No court of the United States may use appropriated funds to enforce
a contempt citation for failure to comply with an injunction or
temporary restraining order if no security was given when the
injunction or order was issued pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil
Procedure 65(c), whether issued prior to, on, or subsequent to the date
of enactment of this section.What does that mean? It means if someone breaks the judge’s emergency order, no matter how serious the harm, the court might not be allowed to punish them unless the person who asked for the order paid money upfront. That money is called a security bond, and it’s meant to cover damages in case the court order ends up causing harm to the other side unfairly.
How much does a security bond cost?
It depends, but it’s often thousands of dollars. In some cases, courts have required $10,000, $50,000, or even more especially when the order is stopping a big government action or corporate decision.
What will this do?
This will halt the enforcement of emergent judicial injunctions and Temporary Restraining Orders (TROs).
Low-income individuals and nonprofit legal groups almost never have that kind of money. Judges often waive the bond requirement in these cases so people can still get urgent protection without being punished for being poor.
Now a TRO is one of the few legal tools that can stop harm in its tracks, fast. It’s what civil rights lawyers, immigration advocates, and everyday people rely on when there’s no time to wait. TROs have been used this year to pause illegal deportations under the AEA, stop mass federal layoffs, and more.
They aren’t final rulings, they’re emergency brakes while it is figured out in court but Section 70302 weakens that brake. It says that unless you had tens of thousands of dollars to post a bond when asking for help, the court’s order might be meaningless. Just a piece of paper the government can ignore.
If the courts can’t stop the government from breaking the law: who can?
They’re Disabling the Judicial System
It does not stop there. Back in April, the House also passed the No Rogue Rulings Act of 2025, which would ban federal judges from issuing nationwide injunctions.
That means even if a policy is clearly unconstitutional, it could only be blocked for the person who sued, everyone else would have to file their own lawsuit.
This means constitutional rights would no longer be protected broadly, they’d be handed out on a case-by-case basis, lawsuit by lawsuit. It’s a vision of justice that’s not just narrow, it’s completely inaccessible for the vast majority of people.
Combined with Section 70302, this creates a two-pronged attack on the judicial system: first, make emergency orders harder to enforce; second, make them apply only to individuals, not the public.
If the “One Big Beautiful Bill” becomes law with Section 70302 intact EACH INDIVIDUAL seeking emergency court protection (like a TRO or injunction) could be required to pay that security bond, potentially $10,000 or more, just to ensure that the judicial order can be enforced. That’s $10,000+ for EACH person.
Together, these changes don’t just chip away at the power of the courts.. they gut their ability to protect people from abuse by the executive branch. They don’t rewrite the Constitution on paper. They do something more insidious: they make constitutional rights too expensive to enforce and too narrow to matter.
This isn’t just legal jargon. It’s not boring policy talk. It’s your rights. Your community. Your future. On the line.
Historically, injunctions blocked the enforcement of Jim Crow laws, anti-immigrant bans, and discriminatory healthcare rules. Without that tool, Brown v. Board wouldn’t have ended segregation in more than one school.
If these restrictions hold, the effect will snowball.
Fewer people will sue. Judges will hesitate to issue meaningful orders.
Agencies will learn they can act first and ignore the law later.
Over time, the courts become less of a check and more of a bystander.
This Bill Is Headed to the Senate. Now Is the Time to Speak Up.
The One Big Beautiful Bill, including Section 70302, has already passed the House. The No Rogue Rulings Act of 2025 passed in April. Now they’re both heading to the Senate.
This is the moment where your voice NEEDS to be heard by your representatives.
Once these bills pass the Senate, they go straight to the President’s desk, and at that point, it’s over. So if you care about your rights, your community’s access to justice, or the basic ability of courts to hold the government accountable, you need to call your senators. Right now. I don’t care if it is 2 pm or 2 am. They have voicemails.
You can find your senator here
You can also utilize the free five calls app!
Yes, call everyone, even the Republicans who’ve shown cult-like loyalty to Trump. Especially the Republicans. Because this isn’t just about party lines… it’s about whether we still have a functioning court system that can stop government abuse when it matters most.
I’ll be keeping a close eye on both of these bills, along with any upcoming Senate votes or court challenges, and I’ll continue to post updates as they unfold. There’s a lot buried in the One Big Beautiful Bill that goes far beyond the budget. Some of it is genuinely dangerous. And I’m going to keep talking about it.
Because the more people know, the harder it becomes to quietly dismantle our rights. Keep watching. Keep sharing. Keep pushing back.
With such a bill, if passed by the Senate, the nation may as well fire all the judges, and turn the courts into retail stores and shopping centers.
And it’s retroactive: whether issued prior to… so current TROs where the bond was waived would be unenforceable.