If Trump were to ever go down this road, Franklin said, the ultimate arbiter would be the other, third, branch of government. He said Trump could be held in contempt of court, and it would then be up to the House of Representatives.

“[Contempt of court], in my opinion, is a ‘high crime or misdemeanor’ in the meaning of the Constitution, and he would be subject to impeachment,” Franklin said. “Whether or not the House of Representatives would see it that way is another question. It is at that point their call.”

The other big question with Trump — should he opt to question the legal authority of a judge who runs afoul of him — is whether the government agencies who would need to go along with Trump’s decision would actually do so. Trump’s Defense and Homeland Security secretaries, for example, are military generals who are accustomed to a chain of command. Would they ignore a court order in favor of Trump?