President Joe Biden s push to combat planetary warming is running headfirst into the industry-friendly, anti-environmental legacy of his Republican predecessor.

On Tuesday, a federal judge in Louisiana struck down Bidens early executive order that temporarily froze new oil and gas leases across federal lands and waters. The pause, which Republicans have falsely described as an all-out ban, was put in place pending the outcome of a review of the federal leasing program.

The reversal is unlikely to have any immediate impact on the U.S. output of climate-changing emissions. But the ruling highlights perhaps the biggest obstacle to Bidens climate agenda: a judiciary packed with conservative judges who share former President Donald Trumps loyalty to the fossil fuel industry.

Trump appointed 226 judges during his single four-year term. While that total falls short of the 320 judges Barack Obama added during his two-term presidency, or the 322 judges George W. Bush added during his own, Trump sat 54 judges on federal appeals court benches just one fewer than Obama and eight fewer than Bush.

Those appointees formed what Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), an ally of the fossil fuel industry, called a firewall to Joe Bidens harmful attacks on Made-in-America energy in a tweet Tuesday night.

Trumps judicial picks have been widely criticized as ideologues. The ruling issued Tuesday proved Judge Terry Doughty of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana to be no exception.

Doughty concluded that Louisiana and other plaintiffs in the case proved they would suffer harm from the administrations action.

Millions and possibly billions of dollars are at stake, Doughty wrote in his order . Local government funding, jobs for Plaintiff State workers, and funds for the restoration of Louisianas Coastline are at stake.

Doughty did not mention whats at stake if nations fail to rein in planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions: rising seas, worsening heat waves and drought, and emerging infectious diseases.