The Trump administration has submitted an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn a lower court ruling that mandates the reinstatement of thousands of probationary employees who were terminated as part of the president’s initiative to streamline the federal bureaucracy.
Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris contended that the lower court’s decisions have led to “chaos” within federal agencies by encroaching on their decision-making authority. She urged the justices to permit the employees to remain off the payroll while the broader legal issues regarding the dismissals are addressed. “Each day the preliminary injunction is in effect subjects the Executive Branch to judicial micromanagement of its daily operations,” Harris stated before the Supreme Court.
This case has rapidly evolved into a significant confrontation regarding President Trump’s ambitious agenda, directly questioning his power to terminate federal employees en masse. U.S. District Judge William Alsup, appointed by Clinton in Northern California, has been particularly adversarial towards the Trump administration, nearly accusing them of dishonesty during the hearings. “I tend to doubt that you’re telling me the truth,” Alsup remarked to the government in one session, labeling the situation a “sham.”
The termination of tens of thousands of probationary employees is at the heart of this legal conflict, alongside the issue of whether a president, as the head of the Executive Branch, possesses the authority to oversee the agencies and personnel under his control. Alsup concluded that the dismissals were executed under the guidance of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which he determined lacks the authority to make such decisions.
While OPM encouraged agencies to evaluate their probationary employees and decide whom to retain, the administration maintains that the actual decisions to terminate were made by the agencies themselves. The probationary employees in question had been in their positions for less than a year, or in some instances, less than two years in specific roles.
Alsup has mandated the reinstatement of employees in six departments: Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Interior, Energy, Defense, and Treasury. Another federal judge has indicated that the terminations were likely unlawful, although this judge did not take the same decisive action as Alsup. In addition to requiring that the employees be placed back on the payroll, Alsup has instructed that they return to their former roles.
The administration had intended to keep the dismissed employees on paid leave until the case was fully resolved. If the justices do not intervene, agencies will be required to reassign workspaces, issue new credentials, enroll employees in benefits, and provide necessary onboarding training for individuals whom the government claims it may ultimately dismiss again.
The Department of Justice argued that Judge Alsup exceeded his authority by requesting regular updates on the number of reinstated employees. After an unsuccessful attempt in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where a 2-1 decision upheld Judge Alsup’s rehiring orders, Trump officials sought intervention from the Supreme Court.