Victims of Trump purge call supreme court ruling a ‘dagger in heart’ to civil service

Rebecca Slaughter, who was fired by Trump from the FTC in 2025, worries agencies will be undermined by threat of removal if a decision is contrary to president's favor

Federal officials fired by the Trump administration are calling the recent supreme court decision a dagger in the heart" of the civil service that will open independent federal government agencies to corruption and manipulation at the whim of the president.

Since Donald Trump took office again in January 2025, he has fired more than 50 officials from federal agencies as the Trump administration openly sought to have the supreme court overturn a landmark 1935 ruling that limited the president's power over independent agencies, known as Humphrey's Executor.