Trump thought courts would help him win but judges were his harshest critics

Judges, whether appointed by Democrats or Republicans, rejected Trump's election claims, underscoring their role in checking his efforts to stay in power

Donald Trump and his allies say their lawsuits aimed at subverting the 2020 election and reversing his loss to Joe Biden would be substantiated, if only judges were allowed to hear the cases.

There is a central flaw in the argument. Judges have heard the cases and have been among the harshest critics of the legal arguments put forth by Trump's legal team, often dismissing them with scathing language of repudiation.