Trump Appeals to Supreme Court Over Firing of Whistleblower Agency Head

Trump files emergency appeal to the Supreme Court over authority to fire independent agency leader.

Hampton Dellinger sues after being dismissed as head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

Case challenges the president’s power to remove officials protected by law from dismissal.

President Donald Trump’s efforts to reduce the size of the federal bureaucracy are now before the Supreme Court, according to U.S. media reports.

He has filed an emergency appeal requesting the Court’s decision on whether he has the authority to dismiss the head of an independent whistleblower agency.

Hampton Dellinger, the head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration after being dismissed by email earlier this month.

In addition to firing Dellinger, Trump has removed over a dozen inspectors general across various federal agencies and terminated thousands of government employees.

Dellinger, appointed by former President Joe Biden, argues that his dismissal violated a law designed to protect the leaders of independent agencies from being removed by the president, unless due to neglect, misconduct, or inefficiency.

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., issued a temporary order on Wednesday allowing Dellinger to retain his position while the case is being reviewed.

On Saturday, a divided U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., denied the Trump administration’s request to overturn the lower court’s ruling.

As a result, the Justice Department filed an emergency appeal with the Supreme Court, marking the first case brought before the justices since Trump assumed office last month.

“This court should not allow lower courts to seize executive power by dictating to the president how long he must continue employing an agency head against his will,” Sarah M Harris, acting solicitor general, wrote in the filing provided by the Department of Justice to the Washington Post.

“Until now, as far as we are aware, no court in American history has wielded an injunction to force the president to retain an agency head,” the acting solicitor general wrote, according to the Associated Press news agency.

President Trump’s orders on immigration, transgender issues, and government spending have faced numerous lawsuits in lower courts, with some cases potentially reaching the Supreme Court.

Trump’s push to downsize and restructure the 2.3 million-strong federal civilian workforce continued over the weekend.

Employees in various health agencies still within their probation periods received termination notices on Saturday evening. Sources told CBS News and the BBC’s U.S. partner that the letters stated, “Unfortunately, the agency finds that you are not fit for continued employment because your ability, knowledge, and skills do not fit the agency’s current needs, and your performance has not been adequate to justify further employment.”

As of now, at least 9,500 workers from agencies including Health and Human Services, Energy, Veterans Affairs, Interior, and Agriculture have been fired, according to Reuters.

Additionally, around 75,000 workers have taken a voluntary buyout offered by the White House.

This cost-cutting effort is being led by the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), a task force headed by Elon Musk.

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