Supreme Court Clears Trump to Move Forward With ‘Large-Scale’ Federal Layoffs
The U.S. Supreme Court handed President Donald Trump another victory Tuesday, allowing his executive order to move ahead with sweeping cuts across federal agencies.
In an unsigned decision, the justices lifted a lower court’s injunction that had blocked Trump’s February 13 directive calling for “large-scale reductions in force.” The injunction had been issued by Clinton-appointed Judge Susan Illston in Northern California, who argued the order’s legality was questionable. The Supreme Court, however, said her ruling was based on speculation since the actual reorganization plans had not yet been submitted to the court.
“Given that the Government is likely to prevail on its assertion that the Executive Order and Memorandum are lawful — and considering that the other factors relevant to granting a stay are met — we approve the application,” the Court wrote.
Even Justice Sonia Sotomayor, one of the Court’s most liberal members, sided with the majority in granting the stay. She clarified that her concurrence was procedural, not an endorsement of Trump’s downsizing agenda. “I concur with the Court’s stay because it allows the District Court to address those issues initially,” she wrote.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, warning the decision could trigger “mass employee terminations, widespread cancellation of federal programs and services, and the dismantling of much of the Federal Government as established by Congress.” She argued that Trump needs congressional approval to carry out such sweeping cuts, stressing: “According to our Constitution, Congress possesses the authority to create administrative agencies and define their functions.”
The majority, however, concluded that the administration has the authority to begin implementing Trump’s plan, which is part of a broader push to streamline government and increase efficiency. Oversight of the initiative has been managed by the Department of Government Efficiency — a department previously led by Elon Musk.
Labor unions and progressive groups had sued to block the initiative, warning it would slash jobs in agencies including Agriculture, Energy, Labor, Interior, Treasury, State, Veterans Affairs, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Attorney General Pam Bondi praised the ruling, writing on X: “Today, the Supreme Court prevented lawless lower courts from limiting President Trump’s power over federal personnel — yet another Supreme Court triumph thanks to DOJ lawyers. Now, federal agencies can achieve unprecedented levels of efficiency.”
The ruling marks another high-profile legal win for Trump at the Supreme Court in recent weeks. In June, the justices also agreed to hear a Republican-backed challenge to federal campaign finance rules that restrict how much political parties can spend on behalf of candidates.
That case — National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission — was brought by the NRSC, the NRCC, and two GOP Senate candidates, including current Vice President JD Vance. The petitioners argue the restrictions violate the First Amendment by limiting parties’ ability to fully support their candidates.
