Fox News legal analyst Andrew Napolitano Andrew Peter NapolitanoFox's Napolitano: Supreme Court confirmation hearings will be 'World War III of political battles' Fox's Napolitano: 2000 election will look like 'child's play' compared to 2020 legal battles Barr asked Rupert Murdoch to 'muzzle' Fox News commentator Napolitano, book claims MORE claimed President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE has violated the separation of powers three times in the last week alone.

The former New Jersey Supreme Court judge said on "Judge Napolitano’s Chambers" on Fox News that Trump has been "abandoning separation of powers Madison so carefully crafted."

Napolitano highlighted what he said were three instances, calling it a "very dangerous trend."

ADVERTISEMENT

One such instance was Trump directing acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan Patrick Michael ShanahanHouse Armed Services chairman expresses confidence in Esper amid aircraft carrier coronavirus crisis Boeing pleads for bailout under weight of coronavirus, 737 fallout Esper's chief of staff to depart at end of January MORE not to purchase a missile defense system that Congress called for and authorized, instead instructing him to use the funding for a portion of the wall along the Texas-Mexico border, Napolitano said.

Watch the latest video at foxnews.com

"He asked Congress for the money, and the Congress said no, and he took the money anyway," he said. "That violates the separation of powers."

Napolitano also cited Trump telling Shanahan to send troops to secure the southern border and Trump’s decision to impose a 25 percent tariff on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, which he called a tax.

As many economists have, Napolitano argued that tariffs are not paid by the country they are imposed upon, in this case China, as the cost of tariffs are actually passed on to the consumer — hence the term "tax."

Napolitano noted that presidents exercising increased power predates Trump and is made possible when Congress fails to do its job properly.

"There was a time in American history when the Congress wrote the laws, and the president enforced the laws, and the courts interpreted them," Napolitano said in his opening.

Napolitano, a target of attacks from Trump in recent weeks, has become one of the president's most vocal critics and one of a few from the president’s favorite news network.