Trump administration asks US appeals court to block order reinstating FTC commissioner Slaughter
(Reuters) -President Donald Trump's administration on Monday asked a U.S. appeals court to block a court order that allowed Democratic U.S. Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter to resume her role at the agency, despite the White House's effort to remove her from office.
The Justice Department in a filing to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said the lower judge's reinstatement of Slaughter runs afoul of the president's executive powers under the U.S. Constitution.
The administration is challenging a July 17 order by U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan in Washington that said the White House violated federal law in removing Slaughter, who was appointed by Democratic former President Joe Biden.
The case in the appeals court will mark the latest clash over the Republican Trump administration's efforts to fire some Democratic officials at federal agencies.
The U.S. Supreme Court in May ruled that Trump could bar two Democratic members of federal labor boards from their posts while they challenge the legality of his dismissal of them.
The White House, FTC and lawyers for Slaughter did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.
Slaughter and another ousted Democratic FTC commissioner, Alvaro Bedoya, sued the Trump administration in March over their removal. They said Trump violated a law that allows a president to fire an FTC member only for good cause, including neglect of duties.
Bedoya has since formally resigned from the agency.
In her ruling last week, AliKhan said the Trump administration's attempt to remove Slaughter did not comply with removal protections in federal law.
AliKhan said the Trump administration wants 'the FTC to be something it is not: a subservient agency subject to the whims of the President and wholly lacking in autonomy. But that is not how Congress structured it.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Republican Congressman who voted against Trump's bill now trying to fundraise off Epstein files
Republican lawmaker Thomas Massie is fundraising off his efforts to compel the Justice Department to release files on the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. In a recent email to supporters, first reported by MeidasTouch News, the Republican wrote that 'the most powerful people on earth have been working overtime to keep the Epstein files hidden for many years.' 'When I force Congress to go on record on the Epstein files, I have no doubt that they'll bring the world down on my head,' Massie added. Massie and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna are leading a bipartisan effort to force Congress to vote on a measure compelling the Justice Department to release the remaining Epstein files. The petition comes after the Justice Department and FBI released a joint memo indicating there will be 'no further disclosure' on the investigation into Epstein, who was facing federal sex trafficking charges when he died. In the same memo, the agencies confirmed Epstein died by suicide in a New York City jail cell in August 2019 following years of conspiracy theories around his death. The memo also claimed Epstein did not keep a 'client list,' even after Attorney General Pam Bondi suggested the list was on her desk earlier this year. The administration is facing mounting backlash from both sides of the aisle over the memo. Trump has defended Bondi and directed her to seek the release of grand jury testimony related to Epstein last week. The Justice Department has since filed a request with a federal judge to unseal that testimony. It's unclear when it will actually be unsealed, however. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson announced the House's annual summer break will start on Wednesday as Massie and Khanna continued their efforts. Johnson says he doesn't 'understand' Massie's motivation for bringing the petition. 'Thomas Massie could have brought his discharge petition anytime over the last four years of the Biden administration,' Johnson said. 'He could have done that at any time, and now he's clamoring as if there's some sort of timeline on it.' 'I try to follow Ronald Reagan's 11th Commandment: never speak evil of another Republican," he added. "My gosh, it's hard to do sometimes around here.' The House could be forced into a vote after the summer break ends in September. Massie and Khanna need 218 signatures to force the vote in the fall. Massie is optimistic they'll get them, NBC News reports. "Over the August recess, I think momentum will build for transparency. I don't think this is going to go away," Massie said. "And I think, when we return in September, we'll get Phase 2 of the Epstein files because we'll get…every Democrat and at least a dozen Republicans who want transparency and justice." Massie has made an apparent enemy of Trump in recent months. Trump called Massie a 'Third Rate Congressman' and a 'LOSER' after he voted against the president's sweeping tax and spending bill, also known as the 'Big, Beautiful Bill.' Massie was one of only two Republicans to vote against the legislation, which passed the House along party lines and passed the Senate with a tie-breaking vote from Vice President JD Vance. Trump also raged against Massie when he criticized his decision to bomb nuclear sites in Iran last month. 'Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky is not MAGA, even though he likes to say he is,' Trump wrote on Truth Social. 'The good news is that we will have a wonderful American Patriot running against him in the Republican Primary, and I'll be out in Kentucky campaigning really hard. MAGA is not about lazy, grandstanding, nonproductive politicians, of which Thomas Massie is definitely one,' he added. The Independent has contacted Massie for comment.
The Hill
27 minutes ago
- The Hill
Trump announces trade deal with Japan that lowers threatened tariff to 15%
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced a trade framework with Japan on Tuesday, placing a 15% tax on goods imported from that nation. 'This Deal will create Hundreds of Thousands of Jobs — There has never been anything like it,' Trump posted on Truth Social, adding that the United States 'will continue to always have a great relationship with the Country of Japan.' The president said Japan would invest 'at my direction' $550 billion into the U.S. and would 'open' its economy to American autos and rice. The 15% tax on imported Japanese goods is a meaningful drop from the 25% rate that Trump, in a recent letter to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, said would be levied starting Aug. 1. With the announcement, Trump is seeking to tout his ability as a dealmaker — even as his tariffs, when initially announced in early April led to a market panic and fears of slower growth that for the moment appear to have subsided. Key details remained unclear from his post, such as whether Japanese-built autos would face a higher 25% tariff that Trump imposed on the sector. But the framework fits a growing pattern for Trump, who is eager to portray the tariffs as win for the U.S. His administration says the revenues will help reduce the budget deficit and more factories will relocate to America to avoid the import taxes and cause trade imbalances to disappear. But the wave of tariffs continues to be a source of uncertainty about whether it could lead to higher prices for consumers and businesses if companies simply pass along the costs. The problem was seen sharply Tuesday after General Motors reported a 35% drop in its net income during the second quarter as it warned that tariffs would hit its business in the months ahead, causing its stock to tumble. As the Aug. 1 deadline for the tariff rates in his letters to world leaders is approaching, Trump also announced a trade framework with the Philippines that would impose a tariff of 19% on its goods, while American-made products would face no import taxes. The president also reaffirmed his 19% tariffs on Indonesia. The U.S. ran a $69.4 billion trade imbalance on goods with Japan last year, according to the Census Bureau. America had a trade imbalance of $17.9 billion with Indonesia and an imbalance of $4.9 billion with the Philippines. Both nations are less affluent than the U.S. and an imbalance means America imports more from those countries than it exports to them. The president is set to impose the broad tariffs listed in his recent letters to other world leaders on Aug. 1, raising questions of whether there will be any breakthrough in talks with the European Union. At a Tuesday dinner, Trump said the EU would be in Washington on Wednesday for trade talks. 'We have Europe coming in tomorrow, the next day,' Trump told guests. The president earlier this month sent a letter threatening the 27 member states in the EU with 30% taxes on their goods to be imposed starting on Aug. 1. The Trump administration has a separate negotiating period with China that is currently set to run through Aug. 12 as goods from that nation are taxed at an additional 30% baseline. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he would be in the Swedish capital of Stockholm next Monday and Tuesday to meet with his Chinese counterparts. Bessent said his goal is to shift the American economy away from consumption and to enable more consumer spending in the manufacturing-heavy Chinese economy. 'President Trump is remaking the U.S. into a manufacturing economy,' Bessent said on the Fox Business Network show 'Mornings with Maria.' 'If we could do that together, we do more manufacturing, they do more consumption. That would be a home run for the global economy.'
Axios
27 minutes ago
- Axios
Trump says U.S. reached Japan trade deal with 15% tariffs
President Trump on Tuesday said the U.S. notched a trade agreement with Japan that would see 15% tariffs on all goods imported from one of the nation's key trade partners. Why it matters: A U.S.-Japan trade deal would be the most significant since the White House threatened to impose sharply higher tariffs on much of the globe. What they're saying: "Japan will open their Country to Trade including Cars and Trucks, Rice and certain other Agricultural Products and other things," Trump said. He said that Japan would invest $550 billion in the U.S. "which will received 90% of the Profits." Trump did not specify what form such an investment would take. The deal will include "reciprocal tariffs" of 15%, Trump added. Zoom in: That is lower than the 25% tariff rate that the White House threatened in a letter sent to Japanese officials earlier this month, which would have taken effect on Aug. 1 if no deal was reached. On April 2, Trump was set to impose a tariff of 24% on goods from the world's fourth largest economy before postponing the so-called Liberation Day tariffs. The intrigue: The U.S. is a massive buyer of Japanese cars and auto parts, which have been subject to a 25% tariff rate since the spring. Trump's social media post did not specify how sector-specific tariffs would be treated under the deal. The big picture: Tuesday was a trade deal whirlwind. Trump said earlier the U.S. reached an agreement with the Philippines that included a tariff rate of 19% on U.S.-bound goods. The White House also released text of the previously announced trade framework with Indonesia, which also set tariffs on goods from the nation at 19%. Like Japan, Trump said both nations have agreed to open their markets to U.S. exporters. The bottom line: Forget the era of ultra-low tariffs. The U.S.-Japan trade deal is the latest to feature double-digit levies on foreign goods.
