Trump asks Supreme Court to approve firing of ethics watchdog amid power dispute

By Merve Berker

US President Donald Trump has asked the Supreme Court to approve the dismissal of a federal ethics watchdog, intensifying an ongoing legal battle over the limits of executive power, according to press reports on Sunday.

The Justice Department filed an emergency request on Sunday, arguing that Trump has the constitutional authority to fire Hampton Dellinger, head of the Office of Special Counsel, despite statutory protections against arbitrary dismissal, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Dellinger, a Biden-era appointee, was terminated on Feb. 7 through a brief email from White House Personnel Office leader Sergio Gor. “On behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I am writing to inform you that your position as Special Counsel of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel is terminated, effective immediately,” the email read.

However, federal law requires that the official can only be removed for “inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.”

Dellinger challenged his dismissal, and a federal court reinstated him temporarily while the case proceeded.

The dispute has become an early test of Trump’s broader efforts to expand presidential power.

Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris argued that the firing aligns with the Second Article of the US Constitution, which grants the president executive authority.

She criticized recent judicial rulings for slowing Trump’s initiatives.

“This TRO intrudes so deeply into the President’s Article II powers,” Harris wrote, referring to the temporary restraining order issued by the court.

The case follows Trump’s recent assertion that “he who saves his Country does not violate any Law,” a statement pinned to his social media account.

The Supreme Court’s decision could set a significant precedent on the boundaries of executive power in the months ahead.