Trump brings emergency appeal over mass firings to Supreme Court

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Friday to reverse a lower court order that has blocked mass firings and major reorganizations at federal agencies, a case that could have enormous consequences on President Donald Trump’s ability to reshape the federal government.

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Friday to reverse a lower court order that has blocked mass firings and major reorganizations at federal agencies, a case that could have enormous consequences on President Donald Trump’s ability to reshape the federal government. The emergency appeal follows a decision from a federal court in California that temporary blocked the administration from conducting those layoffs and shrinking or eliminating entire components of agencies. A senior administration official told CNN that it is watching the case closely because of its significance for allowing Trump to reduce the size and restructure the federal government. US District Judge Susan Illston’s temporary order on May 9 was among the most sweeping legal setbacks Trump and DOGE have faced in their efforts to drastically winnow down the federal bureaucracy. The order covers major reductions at more than a dozen agencies, including the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Energy, Labor, Treasury, State, Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs and the Environmental Protection Agency. “That far-reaching order bars almost the entire executive branch from formulating and implementing plans to reduce the size of the federal workforce,” US Solicitor General John Sauer told the Supreme Court in its appeal.