WASHINGTON —
Chief Justice John Roberts on Monday let President Donald Trump remove a member of the Federal Trade Commission, the latest in a string of high-profile firings allowed for now by the Supreme Court.
Trump first moved to fire Rebecca Slaughter in the spring, but she sued and lower courts ordered her reinstated because the law allows commissioners to be removed only for problems like misconduct or neglect of duty.
Roberts halted those decisions in a brief order, responding to an appeal from the Trump administration on the court’s emergency docket.
The Justice Department has argued that the FTC and other executive branch agencies are under Trump’s control and the Republican president is free to remove commissioners without cause.
Slaughter’s lawsuit over her firing will keep