US Chief Justice John Roberts said the impeachment of federal judges is “not an appropriate response” to disagreement with their rulings, issuing an extraordinary statement hours after President Donald Trump called for removal of a judge in Washington.

“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” the Supreme Court’s leader said Tuesday in an emailed statement. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”