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Trait: Administrative agencies are deregulated or captured by private interests ×
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Tier 1 carried by a primary record
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Mar 28, 2025 Federal Trade Commission commissioners Slaughter and Bedoya filed a lawsuit challenging their termination by the president without statutory cause Tier 1 · Primary Institutions and Governance
Two fired independent-agency commissioners sued, arguing their removal violated statutory protections and separation-of-powers principles.
Independently corroborated by2 independent news desks
Supporting reportingSurfacings — do not carry alone
Supporting reports
- FTC commissioners file lawsuit challenging Trump terminations — Democratic FTC commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya filed a lawsuit on March 28, 2025, challenging their terminations by President Trump announced the previous week. They argue the removals violated the FTC Act, which permits removal only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance, and violated the First and Fifth Amendments. The complaint seeks a court declaration that the terminations are unlawful and that the commissioners be reinstated to serve their remaining terms. Trump's removal notice cited only inconsistency with administration priorities, not statutory grounds.
- FTC commissioners Bedoya and Slaughter fired by Trump administration — Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission, were terminated by the Trump administration. Bedoya, who had led cases against Amazon and other major tech firms, characterized the firings as illegal removals shielded by law only for "insufficiency, neglect of duty or malfeasance." Both commissioners have sued the administration. Bedoya warned of "quid pro quo" dealmaking between the administration and billionaire allies, citing Amazon's $1 million inaugural donation and reported payments to the Trump family, alongside the nomination of an Amazon safety executive to lead OSHA.
Attacks
Verified: Tier 1 primary record
Week 10 – 2025-03-22–2025-03-28
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Jan 30, 2025 Trump signed an executive order making independent regulatory agencies like the SEC and FTC directly accountable to the White House Tier 1 · Primary Institutions and Governance
Subordinating independent regulators to presidential control concentrates power and weakens institutional checks Congress designed into these agencies.
Primary sourceA record that carries the claim alone
Independently corroborated by2 independent news desks
Supporting reportingSurfacings — do not carry alone
Supporting reports
- Trump makes independent regulators answerable to White House — Trump signed an executive order making independent regulatory agencies – such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) – accountable to the White House. Agencies will have to report new policy priorities to the executive branch for approval, which will also have a say over their budgets. The White House states the order ensures "all federal agencies are accountable to the American people, as required by the constitution." Critics argue the move clashes with mainstream interpretations of the Constitution.
Verified: Tier 1 primary record
Week 2 – 2025-01-25–2025-01-31
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