President Trump fired two Democrats from the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday. This cleared the way to the administration's agenda and rejected the traditional rejection of independence by corporate regulators, which could elicite legal challenges.
The White House told Democrats Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya that the president is ending their role. Congress has created an FTC to enforce the Consumer Protection Act and the Antitrust Act. It usually has five members, with the Presidential Party holding three seats, while the other party holding two seats.
“Today, the President illegally fired me from my position as a Federal Trade Commissioner, violating the law and plain language of clear Supreme Court precedents,” Slaughter said in a statement. “Why? Because I have a voice. And he's afraid I'll tell Americans.”
Trump's manipulation is his latest attempt to assert the power of the presidency against independent regulators of agencies within the US government. Most of these regulators are presidential appointees who traditionally had a wide latitude to determine the orientation of the institution.
But the Trump administration has ignored traditional protections for those presidential appointees.
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.
