SCOTUS hands Trump victory on firing Democrat appointees from federal boards

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday allowed for President Donald Trump’s emergency request to dismiss Democrat members of both the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) to stay.

During his first two months in office, Trump removed Democrat NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox and Democrat MSPB Board member Cathy Harris, a move both later challenged in lower courts. After taking up the case in April, the high court ruled 6-3 to temporarily block orders from lower courts refusing Wilcox and Harris to be removed, with the liberal justices in dissent.

“The stay reflects our judgment that the Government is likely to show that both the NLRB and MSPB exercise considerable executive power. But we do not ultimately decide in this posture whether the NLRB or MSPB falls within such a recognized exception; that question is better left for resolution after full briefing and argument,” the filing states.

“The stay also reflects our judgment that the Government faces greater risk of harm from an order allowing a removed officer to continue exercising the executive power than a wrongfully removed officer faces from being unable to perform her statutory duty,” the filing continued.

Following their dismissals, Wilcox and Harris sued the Trump administration over their removal from the boards, as Wilcox had four years left on her term and Harris had three. By March, Judge Beryl Howell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the president to reinstate Wilcox, while U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras ruled that Harris could not be terminated “at will.”

The Trump administration then brought the case to the Supreme Court on April 9, filing an emergency application after the lower courts ordered the reinstatement of both Wilcox and Harris. In response, Chief Justice John Roberts issued an administrative stay, temporarily halting their reinstatement and allowing the high court to consider the administration’s request.

With Thursday’s decision being temporary, the high court is expected to make an official ruling after hearing oral arguments likely next year, according to NPR.

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