The Supreme Court has again undermined the power of Congress with its ruling in Trump v Slaughter, allowing the president further influence over agencies Congress itself created. The decision overturns Humphrey's Executor, a 91-year-old precedent, nullifies the Federal Trade Commission Act, a 112-year-old law, and reapportions power away from Congress to the president. The court ruled that heads of independent agencies cannot be protected from arbitrary firings by laws Congress passed, meaning Donald Trump can now fire agency heads at will and replace them with political loyalists.
Key Exception: Federal Reserve Independence Preserved
The ruling includes one key exception: Donald Trump cannot fire members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors without cause and proper procedure. A separate decision protected Lisa Cook, a Joe Biden appointee and the first Black woman on the Fed's board, who was fired via social media by Trump last year. This protects the Federal Reserve's independence and financial market stability.
Impact on the Administrative State
The Slaughter decision marks another expansion of presidential power and a blow to Congress's prerogatives, targeting the “administrative state” of independent agencies and commissions. The ruling fosters incompetence and incapacity in the federal government, concentrating power in the hands of Donald Trump and the court's Republican appointees. The case stemmed from Trump's 2025 termination of Rebecca Slaughter, an FTC member, without cause.
Constitutional Stakes and Reasoning
The FTC, like all independent agencies, was created by Congress, which also passed laws protecting its leaders from political firing. The Supreme Court decided that any agency with “executive” powers must be under the executive's control. Chief Justice John Roberts argued that the Constitution's separation of powers requires this, though the reasoning overlooks the overlapping purviews of the three branches. In dissent, Justice Sonya Sotomayor said the court was “transforming [the president's] duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed into a license to act in defiance of those very laws.”
Consequences for Government Effectiveness
The ruling sacrifices government effectiveness and agency integrity. Bureaucracy jobs may become favors dispensed by presidents, purging institutional knowledge for political loyalty. Donald Trump called the ruling a “BIG WIN” on Truth Social. Moira Donegan, a Guardian US columnist, noted that the decision undermines constitutional integrity and inflicts suffering on the American people.
