By John Kruzel
WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters)
It was unexpected, but the Supreme Court has allowed something that was once illegal, even for a president. Every nation has government organisations that passively influence daily life in ways that most people are hardly aware of. They establish safety standards for the goods we purchase, ensure that companies abide by the law, and work to keep the public safe from dangers like dangerous toys, broken appliances, or deceptive advertising. Many of these organisations operate in the background under the direction of professionals who remain in their positions even when politicians and presidents change.
Three members were removed despite the order for Trump not to do so
The U.S. Supreme Court let Republican President Donald Trump on Wednesday remove three Democratic members of the government’s top consumer product safety watchdog, boosting his power over federal agencies set up by Congress to be independent from presidential control. Granting a Justice Department request, the justices lifted Maryland-based U.S. District Judge Matthew Maddox’s.
This is an order that had blocked Trump from dismissing three Consumer Product Safety Commission members appointed by Democratic former President Joe Biden while a legal challenge to their removal proceeds. Maddox had ruled that Trump overstepped his authority in firing Commissioners Mary Boyle, Alexander Hoehn-Saric and Richard Trumka Jr.
It was not signed, but the Supreme Court allowed it to happen
The Supreme Court in a brief unsigned order, indicated that the Trump administration was likely to show that the president is authorized by the U.S. Constitution to remove Consumer Product Safety Commission members. It was the latest in a series of legal victories for Trump in which the Supreme Court halted lower court rulings that had blocked his actions.
The court has a 6-3 conservative majority. Its three liberal members dissented on Wednesday. Justice Elena Kagan, joined by fellow liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, wrote that the court had again used its,
“Emergency docket to destroy the independence of an independent agency, as established by Congress.”
This is what Justice Elena Kagan, an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, said,
“By allowing the President to remove Commissioners for no reason other than their party affiliation, the majority has negated Congress’s choice of agency bipartisanship and independence.”
Are consumers safe in the United States?
According to the verdict, President Trump can now appoint individuals who share his interests and beliefs about the proper operation of federal regulations to replace the three Democratic commissioners. The commission will be more effective, according to those who support the proposal, because the president would have a team that promptly pursues his agenda.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission was created by Congress in 1972 and tasked with reducing the risk to consumers of injury or death from defective or harmful products. The agency sets safety standards, conducts product-safety investigations, and issues recalls of hazardous products. Colas Sansone, an attorney for the fired commissioners, vowed to continue fighting for their reinstatement.
To establish the five-member commission’s independence from direct White House control, Congress authorised the president to fire commissioners only for neglect of duty or malfeasance, not at will. Now that this has all happened, we are all questioning the durability of the rules and regulations that guide decisions made by the president. We do understand that the president is the highest rank in a country; however, presidents are human, and they can miss it as well and make mistakes. Therefore, adhering to some of the rules also shows that he or she respects his or her country. Can we say the same for Trump?
GCN.com/Reuters.
