U.S. Senate and House Democratic leaders have filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in the case of Trump v. Slaughter, contesting former President Donald Trump's attempt to remove Rebecca Slaughter from her position as a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The lawmakers argue that this removal effort threatens the independence of federal agencies such as the FTC, which is tasked with protecting consumers from unfair business practices.
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ranking Member of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, was among those who signed the brief. Other signatories include Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.), House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY-8), Representative Joe Neguse (D-CO-2), Representative Jamie Raskin (D-MD-8), Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ-6), and Representative Jerry Nadler (D-NY-12).
The lawmakers emphasized that independent agency commissioners are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate to ensure their actions remain free from direct presidential control.
“The structure of multimember independent agencies is not only entrenched by history and tradition. It also reflects an eminently reasonable interpretation of Congress’s array of Article I powers, respects the President’s Article II authority, and comports with broader constitutional values,” wrote the lawmakers in their brief.
They further argued: “Indeed, at-will removals of commissioners of independent agencies would lead regulated entities and the public to believe that the President is able to pick winners and losers in the American economy through intervening in individual cases. That would detrimentally alter the way the public interacts with these regulators, and, consequently, the economic choices the regulators make.”
The full text of their amicus brief can be found online.
