Staff Reports
The Trump administration finds itself at the center of a legal whirlwind as it charges headfirst into its first major battle at the Supreme Court. The situation has all the drama one could imagine, with President Trump seeking an emergency application to rid himself of Hampton Dellinger—a Biden appointee who heads the Office of Special Counsel, which is all about protecting whistleblowers. This tussle began when Trump decided Dellinger wasn’t fit for the job, but a lower court had the audacity to order his reinstatement.
Dellinger acted quickly, launching a lawsuit shortly after he was ousted on February 7. By elevating his case to the Supreme Court, Trump is sending a clear message that he’s not playing around when it comes to safeguarding executive power. The Acting Solicitor General argued that allowing a court to dictate presidential authority is a slippery slope—more slippery than a politician dodging a tax return. The petition emphasizes that this judicial meddling is unprecedented, suggesting no court in American history has tried to enforce the retention of a president’s choice for an agency head.
Trump Admin Brings First Major Appeal to Supreme Court.https://t.co/Phgf68lQm7
— 🇺🇸 The MAGA Train 🇺🇸 Kenneth F Crowe (@KennethFCrowe1) February 18, 2025
A two-to-one decision from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals didn’t help Trump’s cause, denying an attempt to block the lower court’s temporary hold, reminding everyone that these kinds of orders are not usually subject to appeal. But Trump isn’t one to back down easily. His legal team insists that requiring the president to keep an unwanted agency head only to appease a court is downright ridiculous, not to mention a breach of Article II powers meant for the presidency.
The initial roadblocks for Trump have piled up like the plates at a free buffet, with previous temporary restraining orders disrupting his administration’s efforts. These include funding freezes and mandates limiting hospitals that offer certain medical procedures from receiving federal funds. The White House doesn’t appreciate this overreach, going so far as to label it as judicial gymnastics that keep the executive branch’s hands tied when it should be full steam ahead.
In the petition, the administration argues that the founders never envisioned a scenario where the President would need to solicit advice from a federal district court to remove someone from power. No, they envisioned a strong executive branch offsetting the whims of an overreaching judiciary. So, as the drama unfolds, one thing becomes clear: the Trump administration is busy putting the judicial branch on notice that it won’t roll over quietly in the face of what they see as legal absurdities. Whether this epic showdown can restore the balance of power remains to be seen, but as the justices hear this case, the stakes are undeniably high.
