Trump Administration Seeks Supreme Court Approval for Large-Scale Federal Worker Layoffs

The Trump administration has filed an emergency appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to lift an injunction issued by a California federal court that blocks the president’s executive order to reorganize federal agencies and conduct mass layoffs across the federal workforce. The injunction, initially imposed by U.S. District Judge Susan Illston and later upheld by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, prevents the administration from proceeding without explicit congressional authorization. Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that the injunction wrongly assumes the president needs special permission from Congress to manage internal personnel decisions, asserting that such authority is a core Article II power inherent to the presidency. Labor unions and several major cities are suing to halt the downsizing, citing potential disruptions to critical services such as food safety inspections and veterans’ health care. Despite these challenges, the administration contends that the Constitution grants the president broad authority to control federal agency staffing without legislative approval. The Supreme Court has requested responses from the opposing parties as it considers whether to reinstate the workforce reduction order.