The New York Times reports that President Trump has acted to remove two Democratic commissioners from the Federal Trade Commission.
President Trump fired the two Democratic members of the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, a rejection of the corporate regulator's traditional independence that may clear the way for the administration's agenda.
The White House told the Democrats, Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya, that the president was terminating their roles, according to statements from the pair. The F.T.C., which enforces consumer protection and antitrust laws, typically has five members, with the president's party holding three seats and the opposing party two. . . .
"I am writing to inform you that you have been removed from the Federal Trade Commission, effective immediately," said a letter sent to one of the commissioners, which was reviewed by The New York Times. "Your continued service on the F.T.C. is inconsistent with my administration's priorities."
This action , even more than the removal of National Labor Relations Board Chair Gwynne Wilcox, targets Humphrey's Executor v. United States as that case concerned the constitutionality of limits on the removal of FTC commissioners. As least one of the removed FTC commissioners has stated his plans to sue.
