US Supreme Court rules Trump can fire heads of independent agencies | US Supreme Court

The US Supreme Court has ruled that Donald Trump can fire the heads of independent agencies or commissions, ending 90 years of legal precedent that restricts executive power.

The vote in Trump v. Slaughter was 6-3, with dissents from Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan.

The case centered on the White House’s March 2025 firing of Federal Trade Commission member Rebecca Slaughter. Trump fired Slaughter via email, telling her that keeping her as commissioner would be “incompatible with [the] priorities of the administration.

After her firing, Slaughter sued the Trump administration, claiming she was fired without cause, and a lower court ruled in favor of her reinstatement.

In challenging Slaughter’s lawsuit, the White House argued that the court should overturn Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, a landmark 1935 decision in which the Supreme Court ruled that the president illegally fired a member of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), thereby limiting the president’s power over independent agencies.

“I think by our best calculation there are about two dozen agencies with a structure similar to the FTC, a bipartisan, multi-member board or commission with some form of implicit or explicit protection against takedown, and one commonality among them is that they all have significant authority to protect market integrity, ensuring that economic decisions are made without fear or favor, and I think they are all at risk,” Slaughter said on a press call on the decision Monday.

Slaughter noted that the Supreme Court also ruled Monday to block Trump’s decision to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook.

Slaughter added that it was “very difficult for me to reconcile the decisions of Cook and Slaughter in that one way or another Wall Street is special and gets special treatment.”

“Today, this Court undoes centuries of political practice and concludes that all three branches of government have acted all this time in open defiance of the Constitution. Its conclusion is wrong,” Sotomayor wrote in her dissent, joined by Kagan and Jackson.

“The text of the Constitution, together with its history, the long-standing practices of the political branches, and the precedents of this Court, make clear that Congress can limit the causes for which the heads of commissions like the FTC can be removed by the President,” they continued. “In ruling otherwise, the Court gives the President a power unknown even to the English Crown against which the Founders revolted, elevating it above its formerly co-equal branches by transforming the duty to see that the laws are faithfully executed into a license to act in defiance of those same laws. »

The FTC is responsible for enforcing consumer protection and antitrust laws. The agency is structured with five bipartisan commissioners, and no more than three can come from the same party. Congress placed restrictions on the hiring and firing of commissioners in an effort to protect the agency from partisan politics. The Trump administration asked the appeals court to put the ruling on hold while it appealed, but its ruling was denied.

“The government is unlikely to succeed on appeal, because any decision by this court in its favor would have to defy binding, precise, and repeatedly preserved precedent by the Supreme Court,” two appellate judges wrote in the majority opinion.

ignore newsletter promotionFree newsletter | About 2 to 3 times a day

Subscribe to Breaking News US

Receive the most important news as it breaks

after newsletter promotion

The Trump administration then went to the Supreme Court, asking to stay the order while the government appeals. The Supreme Court voted to suspend the order in September 2025, with three justices dissenting.

Overturning the choice of Humphrey’s executor, former government officials warned, would undermine the independence of federal agencies.

“Eliminating these protections against dismissal would jeopardize all facets of agency independence, as agency leaders would be reluctant to engage in regulatory or enforcement actions – or even in day-to-day agency decision-making – without coordinating with the White House for fear of dismissal,” wrote Lauren McFerran, former chair of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), and Celine McNicholas, former head of the NLRB, in a report by the Economic Policy Institute of October 2025.

“I think it’s safe to say we are deeply disappointed by today’s decision,” Slaughter said. “I think this is a really sad moment for the FTC, particularly for an institution that I love very much, but also for government institutions in general and for the rule of law.”

Donald Trump celebrated the decision by posting on Truth Social: “This decision has long been sought by presidents of the United States, dating back to the 1930s. It is such an honor to be the sitting president who has won this historic and unprecedented decision, one of the most important presidential powers ever made.” »

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos