A federal judge ruled on Saturday night that President Donald Trump cannot fire Hampton Dellinger, the head of the Office of Special Counsel, all but teeing up the case to the Supreme Court.
U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, determined that Trump can only fire the special counsel for performance-related reasons, not “on a whim or out of personal animus.” She added that the one-sentence email notifying Dellinger of his termination “contained no reasons whatsoever” on why he was being fired.
Jackson also said in her ruling that these restrictions regarding any termination of the special counsel must stand because of the Office of Special Counsel’s independence as it was conceived by Congress and signed into law by the president, which she said is its “defining and essential feature.”
Dellinger, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, sued the Trump administration in February after he was fired. He argued that his removal violated his statutory five-year term, as Congress — not the president — sets the terms of removal for officials like him.
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The Justice Department countered that Dellinger exercises “core executive” functions and serves at the pleasure of the president.
Jackson previously blocked the firing of Dellinger and extended that ruling until Saturday as she weighed a decision on the case. The Trump administration had asked the Supreme Court to overrule that decision so the Department of Justice could move forward with Dellinger’s termination.
