The Left has been throwing everything at Trump since he took office.
They’ve weaponized every institution they control to obstruct the will of voters.
And an Obama judge tossed one sick lawsuit that used kids to kill Trump’s agenda.
Climate Activists Recruit Children as Legal Props
Judge Dana Christensen, who was appointed by Barack Obama, dismissed with prejudice a lawsuit brought by 22 children against the Trump administration that claimed the President’s energy policies violate their constitutional rights to life and liberty.¹
The plaintiffs argued three executive orders Trump signed shortly after taking office would worsen climate change and threaten their futures.²
They asked the federal district court in Montana to block implementation of the orders – which would have erased hundreds of policies across a dozen federal agencies.³
In effect, the complaint sought to use the courts to reverse the energy agenda voters endorsed when they elected Trump by a landslide last November.
John Podesta — who ran Biden’s climate agenda and spent $375 billion of taxpayer money on green energy boondoggles — testified as an "expert witness" last month.⁴
During nearly two hours of testimony, Podesta argued Trump’s orders are illegal, took personal shots at Trump, and blasted federal policies benefiting the oil industry.⁵
But Judge Christensen wasn’t buying what Podesta was selling.
Judge Delivers Dose of Reality About Judicial Limits
Christensen wrote that the lawsuit "amounts to hundreds of lawsuits" bundled into one case.⁶
He ruled courts lack the authority to block the executive orders.
"While this court is certainly troubled by the very real harms presented by climate change and the [executive orders’] effect on carbon dioxide emissions, this concern does not automatically confer upon it the power to act," Christensen wrote.⁷
The judge pointed out what everyone already knew – the plaintiffs wanted him to order the United States to return to Biden’s unpopular environmental policies.⁸
Christensen noted such an injunction wouldn’t even prevent Trump from pursuing his America First energy agenda through other means.⁹
The ruling confirms what Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen suspected all along.
"We’re pleased the rule of law prevailed today and that the judge agreed with our conclusion that he did not have jurisdiction over this case," Knudsen said.¹⁰
Knudsen led a coalition of 19 states that intervened on behalf of the federal defendants.
"Ultimately, the court rejected the plaintiffs’ request to force the Trump administration to revert to Biden’s nonsensical and unpopular policies," Knudsen added.¹¹
He called the case a "show trial contrived by climate activists who wasted the taxpayers’ money."¹²
The Real Story Behind This Coordinated Attack
The Oregon-based left-wing nonprofit Our Children’s Trust filed the lawsuit in May 2025 — just months after Trump took office.¹³
Lead plaintiff Eva Lighthiser, a 19-year-old hiker, claimed Trump’s executive orders are a "death sentence for my generation."¹⁴
But here’s what the mainstream media won’t tell you about Our Children’s Trust and their decade-long campaign of climate lawfare.
This organization has filed lawsuits in all 50 states since 2010.¹⁵
Their flagship federal case – Juliana v. United States – was dismissed by the Supreme Court in March 2025 after dragging on for a decade.¹⁶
Federal courts have consistently ruled these plaintiffs lack standing to sue because courts can’t provide the sweeping remedies they’re demanding.¹⁷
The only victories Our Children’s Trust has scored came at the state level in Montana and Hawaii – and only in states where constitutions explicitly protect a "clean and healthful environment."¹⁸
The U.S. Constitution contains no such language.
They knew this federal lawsuit would fail just like Juliana did.
So why file it?
Because the goal wasn’t winning – it was using the courts to harass the Trump administration and tie up resources defending hundreds of policies simultaneously.
Classic left-wing lawfare tactics designed to obstruct the will of voters who elected Trump to unleash American energy dominance.
Podesta’s Massive Conflicts of Interest
John Podesta’s involvement as an "expert witness" reveals just how coordinated this attack really was.
As Biden’s climate czar, Podesta controlled $375 billion in green energy spending from the so-called Inflation Reduction Act.¹⁹
He doled out $20 billion to eight climate nonprofits, $7 billion for solar installations, $3 billion for green energy at ports, and $2 billion for "environmental justice" initiatives.²⁰
Podesta also founded and chairs the Center for American Progress — a far-left organization funded by George Soros’s Open Society Foundations, the Rockefeller Foundation, Sea Change Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Gates Foundation, and others.²¹
These same foundations back efforts to shut down American oil and gas production.²²
Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss — who funds some of the most powerful climate groups in the country — sits on the Center for American Progress board and has given millions to the organization.²³
Green energy interests have paid Podesta tens of thousands of dollars for consulting work in recent years.²⁴
The web of connections between Podesta, climate activist organizations, and the foundations funding them exposes this lawsuit for what it really was – coordinated left-wing resistance to Trump’s electoral mandate.
Climate Activists Vow to Keep Wasting Everyone’s Time
Our Children’s Trust announced they would appeal Christensen’s ruling — because of course they would.²⁵
"Every day these executive orders remain in effect, these 22 young Americans suffer irreparable harm to their health, safety, and future," said Julia Olson, the lead attorney for the plaintiffs.²⁶
Olson founded Our Children’s Trust and has been filing these losing lawsuits for 15 years.²⁷
The pattern is always the same — file lawsuit claiming children’s constitutional rights are violated, lose in court, claim "the fight continues," appeal, lose again, file another lawsuit.
It’s performative activism designed to generate headlines and fundraising appeals, not serious litigation meant to win.
The Trump administration named EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and other top officials as defendants.²⁸
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the ruling marked a victory "not just for the Trump Administration, but for the American people who voted for President Trump to unleash America’s energy dominance, lower prices, and protect our national security."²⁹
"President Trump saved our country from Joe Biden’s wildly unpopular Green Energy Scam and he will continue to ‘DRILL, BABY, DRILL,’" Rogers added.³⁰
What This Really Means for Trump’s Energy Agenda
Judge Christensen’s ruling protects Trump’s ability to pursue the America First energy policies voters elected him to implement.
The three executive orders at issue protect the coal industry, encourage oil drilling on federal lands, eliminate electric vehicle mandates, reverse crackdowns on gas-powered appliances, and terminate Green New Deal-style policies.³¹
Trump campaigned on cutting energy costs in half within 12 months by unleashing American energy dominance.³²
The ruling sends a clear message to left-wing activists: you can’t use sympathetic plaintiffs to overturn election results through judicial activism.
Montana AG Knudsen put it perfectly when he said the lawsuit amounted to asking courts to "overrule the results of that election."³³
At its core, this was an anti-democratic lawsuit seeking to empower unelected judges to set national energy policy instead of the President voters chose.
Even an Obama-appointed judge recognized that violates separation of powers and the constitutional limits on judicial authority.
The American people spoke in November 2024 when they elected Trump to unleash American energy.
No amount of lawfare by Podesta and his climate activist allies can change that.
¹ Thomas Catenacci, "Obama Judge Tosses John Podesta-Endorsed Lawsuit Claiming Trump’s Energy Policies Are Killing Children," Washington Free Beacon, October 15, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Thomas Catenacci, "Biden Climate Adviser John Podesta Appears as ‘Expert Witness’ in Lawsuit Alleging Trump’s Energy Policies Are Killing Children," Washington Free Beacon, September 17, 2025.
⁶ Catenacci, "Obama Judge Tosses."
⁷ Ibid.
⁸ Ibid.
⁹ Ibid.
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ Ibid.
¹² Ibid.
¹³ Ibid.
¹⁴ Ibid.
¹⁵ "State Legal Actions," Our Children’s Trust, accessed October 16, 2025.
¹⁶ "Top US Court Officially Ends Landmark Youth Climate Suit Against The Federal Government," Climate in the Courts, March 24, 2025.
¹⁷ "Judge dismisses young climate activists’ lawsuit challenging Trump on fossil fuels," Associated Press, October 15, 2025.
¹⁸ "Despite Supreme Court setback, children’s lawsuits against climate change continue," The Conversation, May 6, 2025.
¹⁹ Catenacci, "Biden Climate Adviser John Podesta."
²⁰ Ibid.
²¹ Ibid.
²² Ibid.
²³ Ibid.
²⁴ Ibid.
²⁵ Catenacci, "Obama Judge Tosses."
²⁶ Ibid.
²⁷ "Juliana v. United States – Wikipedia," Wikipedia, accessed October 16, 2025.
²⁸ Catenacci, "Obama Judge Tosses."
²⁹ "Judge dismisses young climate activists’ lawsuit," Associated Press.
³⁰ Ibid.
³¹ "John Podesta, ‘Expert Witness’ on Spending Billions to Destroy American Energy," RedState, September 17, 2025.
³² "Trump vows to halve energy costs in 12 months. Few see that happening," NBC News, September 3, 2024.
³³ "Youth, scientists, argue for court to halt Trump executive orders," Daily Montanan, September 16, 2025.
