Congress must respond after Supreme Court expands Trump’s removal power

Imagine a labor board chair who knows she will be fired if she rules against the president’s friends. Or a consumer safety official who approves a dangerous product because he fears losing his job. That’s no longer hypothetical. It’s the very real consequence of the Supreme Court’s decision Monday in Trump v. Slaughter.

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These fears spring from the court’s decision to allow the president to remove the leaders of formerly independent agencies, not for cause but at the president’s whim. The Supreme Court’s decision guts independent agencies — a fixture of our nation’s executive branch for more than a century. In its latest expansion of executive power, the court ruled in a 6-3 decision to allow President Donald Trump to remove Rebecca Slaughter, a member of the Federal Trade Commission, overturning a decision dating back to 1935. In practice, the court’s decision allows the president to fire the heads of independent agencies, bipartisan commissions and boards for any reason: because he does not like their politics, their latest social media posts or their rulings on cases involving his friends, relatives or donors. 

Independent agencies protect workers and consumers, regulate the media and play many other vital roles in our lives. Congress made them independent to ensure that they rely on expertise and operate free from political interference. The Supreme Court’s decision threatens to inject politics and corruption into these agencies’ functions. Presidents could even effectively shut down agencies when they dislike investigations into the conduct of their political donors and allies. 

Let’s take the impact on workers’ rights. The National Labor Relations Board is supposed to resolve disputes between employers and employees over collective bargaining. Thanks to this ruling, its board members are now beholden to a president who can fire them at will. Unions and workers (not to mention businesses) will never know if the NLRB’s decisions are based on the best interpretation of the law or political favoritism. For instance, earlier this year, the NLRB dismissed a complaint against Elon Musk’s company SpaceX, asserting it lacked jurisdiction. Whether or not that determination was legally correct, decisions like it will now be viewed through a political lens, eroding trust in the agency’s neutrality.

Congress must act now to protect the public.