Trump asks Supreme Court to let him fire US agency head

President Donald Trump asked the US Supreme Court to let him fire the head of an independent US agency that protects government whistleblowers, seeking high-court intervention for the first time in his campaign to oust federal officials who don’t embrace his views.

The filing, submitted Sunday but not yet formally docketed, asks the court to lift a temporary restraining order issued by a federal trial judge in Washington.

The order shields Hampton Dellinger from being removed from his position at US Office of Special Counsel for 14 days.

The weekend rush to the Supreme Court followed a Saturday night order from a divided federal appeals court rejecting the administration’s intervention request as premature.

“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,” acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris said in the Supreme Court filing, released by the Justice Department.

The 2-1 appeals court decision said it would mark a “sharp departure” from normal court procedures to let the administration appeal the temporary order rather than waiting two weeks for a more fulsome trial court ruling. Two Democratic appointees formed the majority on the appeals court, while a Republican nominee dissented.

The dissenter, Trump-appointed Judge Gregory Katsas, wrote that it is “virtually unheard of” for a court to block the president from firing the head of an agency.

Under the Supreme Court’s normal procedures, Trump’s filing will go to Chief Justice John Roberts, who can either act on his own or refer the matter to the full court. Dellinger declined to comment on the filing.

In issuing the temporary restraining order on Wednesday, US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said the firing “plainly” went against US law. The administration didn’t provide any reason, even though federal law says the person in that position could only be removed “for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office,” the judge said.

“This language expresses Congress’s clear intent to ensure the independence of the special counsel and insulate his work from being buffeted by the winds of political change,” Jackson wrote.

Trump has sought to transform the federal government since he took office last month, citing government efficiency as reason to dramatically cut the workforce, close agencies, slash spending and remove senior officials. His actions have drawn dozens of lawsuits challenging the moves as unconstitutional and unlawful executive power grabs.

Dellinger was nominated by former President Joe Biden to lead the special counsel office and was confirmed by the US Senate in February 2024 for a five-year term. He is among several independent agency officials who are suing Trump over his push to oust them.

The case is Dellinger v. Bessent, 25-cv-385, US District Court, District of Columbia (Washington). The Supreme Court case, Bessent v. Dellinger, hasn’t yet been assigned a case number.