A federal judge on Tuesday reinstated a member of the board that oversees personnel disputes for federal workers, ruling President Donald Trump wasn't authorized to remove her without justification.
This case represents a constitutional clash between the branches of government because Trump claims the authority to hire and fire everyone in the executive branch while Congress sets limits on the removal of leaders of independent agencies such as the Merit Systems Protection Board.
Members of the board, designed to protect federal civil service workers from being fired for issues unrelated to their performance, are appointed to seven-year terms and can be removed under a 1978 statute “only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office."
The Republican majority in the House of Representatives has blocked an inquiry into Defense Secretary Pete...
