State attorneys general tell Congress they are fighting administration'lawlessness' in court

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., opened a joint Senate-House "spotlight" hearing on June 14, 2025, by saying state attorneys general are serving as a frontline defense against what they described as an administration that is exceeding constitutional limits.

"Our country is currently facing several catastrophic challenges that the Trump administration is ignoring or exacerbating," Durbin said as he introduced the four principal witnesses. "In this disturbing environment, many Americans have no greater ally than their state's attorneys general."

The four primary witnessesIllinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkintestified that their offices have filed dozens of lawsuits in the past months to block or unwind executive actions they say exceed presidential authority and harm residents.

"Today I want to speak clearly and factually about three specific areas where the Trump administration's actions have had a deeply harmful impact," Raoul said, listing tariffs, education-funding cuts and rollbacks of diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

Why it matters: The attorneys general portrayed their litigation as efforts to preserve separation of powers, protect federally appropriated funding and defend civil liberties. They told lawmakers their suits are not partisan fights but legal steps to enforce statutes, constitutional limits and court precedent.

Most important facts

- Litigation and injunctions: Attorneys general said states have filed hundreds of suits against the administration, winning multiple preliminary injunctions and temporary restraining orders. Raoul and other witnesses cited litigation that blocked planned cuts to National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding, a court order forcing the administration to…