US President Donald Trump has got a big legal victory from the Supreme Court. The Court ruled that the President can now remove members of independent government commissions like the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) even if there are policy differences. With this decision, the powers of the American President have increased considerably.
This decision came with a majority of 6-3. Six conservative judges of the court were in favor of Trump, while three liberal judges opposed it. This case was related to FTC’s Democratic Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter. He was appointed by former President Joe Biden. Trump had removed him from the post in 2025 due to differences on policies. But at that time the law said that the FTC Commissioner could be removed only for reasons like incompetence or misbehavior.
What did the court say in the decision?
The Supreme Court said that this law limits the constitutional powers of the President, hence it is not in accordance with the Constitution. Chief Justice John Roberts said that the FTC enforces about 80 laws related to the country’s economy. Such work comes under the purview of the executive, therefore the President should have the right to remove these officers.
Along with this, the Supreme Court also overturned the historic ‘Humphries Executor vs. United States’ decision of 1935. For the last 91 years, this decision had protected the heads of independent government agencies from being removed for political reasons. After the decision, Trump called it a big victory. He said that this decision confirms the powers given to the President under Article 2 of the Constitution. According to Trump, American Presidents have been demanding this right since the 1930s and this is the most important decision related to the powers of the President.
Three judges opposed the decision
However, all three liberal judges of the court opposed this decision. Justice Sonia Sotomayor said that with this many independent government commissions will now come under the direct control of the President. According to him, this will change the balance of powers within the government and the President will have more power than necessary. Rebecca Slaughter also expressed disappointment at the decision. He said that overturning a 91 year old decision is shocking. According to him, this will weaken the role of Congress and the President’s influence on economic decisions will increase greatly.
However, the Supreme Court also made it clear that this decision will not apply to the US central bank Federal Reserve. On the same day, the Court did not approve of Trump’s attempt to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and said that the independence of the Federal Reserve will remain as before.
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