separation of powers

  • Supreme Court Asked to Keep Block on Trump’s Attempt to Remove Whistleblower Agency Chief

    The head of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC), Hampton Dellinger, has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold a lower court’s order temporarily barring President Donald Trump from removing him from his position. Dellinger argues that allowing his ouster would significantly weaken whistleblower protections at a critical time for federal employees. Dellinger’s filing,…

  • Judge Skeptical of States’ Request to Bar Musk and DOGE from Accessing Government Data, Firing Employees

    A federal judge in Washington, D.C., appeared unconvinced by a request from 14 states seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Trump administration, which would prevent tech billionaire Elon Musk and his associates at DOGE from accessing federal agency data and firing government employees. U.S. District Judge Tanya Sue Chutkan expressed skepticism during Monday’s…

  • U.S. Supreme Court Under Pressure to Remove Order Halting Firing of Ethics Agency Chief

    The Trump administration has formally asked the U.S. Supreme Court to lift a lower court order preventing the removal of Hampton Dellinger, the head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). The administration argues that the ruling is an “unprecedented assault on the separation of powers” and requires immediate intervention. The emergency application, submitted on…

  • Federal Employee Unions Sue Trump Administration Over Plan to Fire Government Workers

    Two major unions representing U.S. government employees have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over its efforts to reclassify and potentially fire tens of thousands of federal workers. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, targets an executive order that revives the controversial “Schedule F” classification, now…

  • Legal Case Study: The Limits of Executive Orders in the United States

    Introduction Executive orders are directives issued by the President of the United States to manage operations of the federal government. While they are a powerful tool for presidential action, their limits are often tested in the courts, particularly when they conflict with constitutional principles, statutory law, or the separation of powers. During his first week…

  • DOJ Watchdog Reveals Secret Surveillance of Congressional Phone Records During Trump Administration

    In a report released Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) disclosed that the DOJ secretly obtained phone records from two members of Congress and 43 congressional staffers, including Kash Patel, during the Trump administration. The surveillance, part of a broad investigation into leaks of classified information, has raised serious…