WASHINGTON, D.C. — A non-profit, non-partisan technology policy think tank working to chart a path forward for policymakers “towards a bright future where technology enhances freedom, and freedom enhances technology” is urging the nation’s highest court to deny the Trump Administration’s emergency application seeking to “deprive” the Federal Trade Commission of its independence.
TechFreedom filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to deny the Trump administration’s emergency application.
In March 2025, President Trump purported to fire two FTC commissioners without cause, the organization led by President Berin Szoka said. “In doing so, the President flouted both the FTC Act and Humphrey’s Executor v. United States (1935), the decision that has long safeguarded the independence of many federal agencies,” Tech Freedom said on Monday.
The administration is now asking the Supreme Court to vacate a lower-court order blocking the firings.
“Handing this President unchecked removal power would be utterly irresponsible,” said Corbin K. Barthold, Director of Appellate Litigation at TechFreedom. “This administration is undermining our republic in ways large and small. Permitting the President to go on a firing spree would further destabilize the government and corrode the rule of law. He has already hollowed out some agencies to the point of losing a quorum, and he has made clear he would like to fire officials at the Federal Reserve—an act that could trigger a financial crisis. We shouldn’t be handing matches to an arsonist.
“Upholding Congress’s power to limit removal does not require judicial innovation or activism,” Barthold continued. “It requires judicial restraint—respect for precedent and continuity in the law. Humphrey’s Executor comfortably governs modern agencies. The decision aligns with the system of checks and balances in our Constitution, and it has proved workable for nearly a century, offering a clear line between permissible multi-member commissions and impermissible novel structures. The Court has recently signaled an interest in overturning Humphrey’s Executor. This case is its chance to reconsider and reverse course.”
For broadcast media leaders, the concern is that FCC Commissioner Anna Gómez could also be fired, should the Trump Administration decide to make a move similar to that seen at the FTC.
The case is Trump v. Slaughter, No. 25A264 (U.S.).
