A US appeals court cleared the way Friday for President Donald Trump’s administration to implement mass firings at a bank regulator set up after the 2008 financial crisis.

The decision sets the stage for significant staff cuts at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a watchdog for banks and fintech companies that has been long targeted by congressional Republicans and far-right Trump allies.

By a 2-1 vote, the appeals court panel annulled a preliminary injunction issued by a US district court in March that had given a lifeline to agency staff. Labor unions representing CFPB workers had argued that Trump appointees’ mass downsizing of CFPB effectively destroyed the agency, overstepping constitutional authority.

“We hold that the district court lacked jurisdiction to consider the cla

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