Supreme Court Decisions
Supreme Court Upholds Some Trump Firings While Allowing Fed's Cook to Retain Her Position
The Supreme Court issued two landmark rulings on June 29, 2026, reshaping the balance of power between the White House and federal regulators. In a 5–4 vote, the court blocked President Trump from immediately firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. But in a separate 6–3 decision, it upheld his firing of two Federal Trade Commission commissioners and wiped out a 91-year-old precedent that had protected independent agency heads from political removal, according to AP News.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote both majority opinions. Trump called the FTC ruling a "BIG WIN" and "one of the most important ever given with respect to Presidential Powers," posting on Truth Social shortly after the decisions dropped, according to PBS NewsHour.
Cook Keeps Her Seat — For Now — on Narrow Grounds
Trump fired Cook via Truth Social in August 2025, accusing her of "mortgage fraud." Cook denied the allegations. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb blocked the firing in September 2025, and the Supreme Court let that block stand. Roberts wrote that accepting Trump's argument would turn the Fed's legal job protections into "at-will employment — an interpretive leap out of step with our Nation's tradition of central banking," according to Courthouse News Service.
The ruling was narrow. The court found Trump failed to give Cook proper notice or a hearing before firing her. That leaves a door open: if the administration follows due process, it could try again. Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the Fed's board, said the ruling "defends the central bank's independence." Her term runs until 2038, according to The Guardian.
91-Year Precedent Overturned, Independent Agencies Gutted
The bigger earthquake came in the FTC case. Since 1935, a ruling called Humphrey's Executor had let Congress shield agency heads from being fired without cause — meaning proven misconduct or neglect. The court's 6–3 majority threw that out. Trump fired FTC Commissioners Rebecca Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya in March 2025, saying their service was "inconsistent" with his priorities. The court said he had the power to do it, according to CBS News.
Slaughter said she was "profoundly disappointed" and accused Trump of firing her because he was "afraid" of what she would tell the public, according to The Guardian. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote a sharp dissent, warning the ruling gave the president a power "unknown even to the English crown" and would "unleash only chaos."
SEC, FCC, and Dozens of Other Agencies Now Serve the President
The practical fallout is sweeping. Except for the Federal Reserve, the idea of a truly "independent" federal agency is now effectively dead. The SEC, FCC, NLRB, and CPSC can all have their leaders fired by the president at will — no cause needed. Legal scholar Stephen Vladeck said the ruling is "enormously important" and "will have massive ramifications for the functioning of the government long after Trump is gone," according to The Guardian.
Law professor Leah Litman noted the court "just handed the president the power to dictate what the heads of [dozens of other] agencies do," according to Marketplace. Critics warn this creates a loyalty test: regulators who enforce rules against allies of the White House now risk their jobs.
Roberts Drew a Red Line at the Federal Reserve
Legal analysts see Roberts' paired rulings as a deliberate split. He gave Trump a broad expansion of power over the general bureaucracy, then "drew a red line" at the Fed to prevent a global financial panic, according to Reuters. Fed Chair Jerome Powell attended the January oral arguments — the first time a sitting Fed chair had ever appeared at a Supreme Court hearing — calling the case "the most important legal case in the Fed's 113-year history."
The Fed was spared partly because of its unique history. The court pointed to its roots in the First and Second Banks of the United States, dating back more than 200 years. No Fed governor has ever been fired in the institution's 111-year history. Markets reacted calmly; the Dow Jones rose 0.3% following related rulings that day, according to AP News.
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