The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday granted the Trump administration the authority to retain several thousand probationary federal employees on the payroll while lower courts evaluate the legitimacy of recent downsizing measures. This decision marks another victory for the White House amid ongoing legal challenges.
The Supreme Court’s ruling overturned a lower court’s order that mandated the government to reinstate over 16,000 probationary employees who had been terminated. While the decision is not final regarding the employees’ long-term status, it significantly impacts both the workers and the federal agencies involved in the interim, as noted by the New York Times.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor dissented from the ruling without providing specific reasons, while Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson expressed concern that the court should not have addressed such a significant issue in the context of an emergency application.
This order represents the latest in a series of Supreme Court victories for the Trump administration, stemming from a recent wave of executive actions. However, the ruling is considered technical and tentative, with the justices indicating that their order would remain in effect as the lawsuit progresses.
The lawsuit originated from a preliminary injunction issued last month by U.S. District Judge William H. Alsup in California, which ordered the administration to restore the more than 16,000 probationary employees fired from various departments, including the Pentagon, Treasury, Agriculture, Energy, Veterans Affairs, and Interior.
In his ruling, Judge Alsup acknowledged that “each federal agency has the statutory authority to hire and fire its employees, even at scale, subject to certain safeguards.”
This ruling is the second instance this week in which the Supreme Court has sided with the Trump administration. Earlier, a federal judge who had blocked the administration’s use of a 1798 wartime law to expedite the deportation of Venezuelan nationals canceled a scheduled court hearing after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the president.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg announced the cancellation of the hearing, stating that the appropriate venue for such proceedings would be the Southern District of Texas or wherever the plaintiffs facing potential removal are currently held. This case involved the Trump administration’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to swiftly deport Venezuelan nationals, including individuals linked to the Tren de Aragua gang.
Plaintiffs had sought an emergency restraining order in D.C. District Court to halt the administration’s use of the law, which Judge Boasberg granted, citing the likelihood of imminent and “irreparable” harm to the affected migrants. A federal appeals court upheld this decision, placing Boasberg in direct opposition to the Trump administration.
The Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision established due process rights and the right to judicial review for migrants facing deportation under the Alien Enemies Act. The justices emphasized that migrants must be given the opportunity to appear in court before being deported and must receive adequate notice of any intended removal proceedings.
The majority opinion stated, “Detainees must receive notice after the date of this order that they are subject to removal under the Act,” and that this notice must be provided in a manner that allows them to seek habeas relief in the appropriate venue before any removal occurs.
As these legal battles unfold, the implications of the Supreme Court’s decisions will continue to shape the landscape of federal employment and immigration policy under the Trump administration.
