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WASHINGTON, D.C. – America First Legal (AFL), in partnership with Boyden Gray PLLC, has filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Cook, urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the President’s authority to remove Federal Reserve Board members for cause and to reverse lower-court rulings that invented due process rights in public office and undermined core Article II powers.
This case centers on the separation of powers. The D.C. Circuit and the district court held that a Federal Reserve Board member had a personal “property right” to keep her position—essentially barring President Trump from removing members without a hearing or judicial review. If allowed to stand, that ruling would immunize officials from presidential oversight and democratic accountability.
AFL’s brief explains that public office is not private property and that no court has the power to reinstate a presidential appointee. The Civil Service Reform Act confirms that principal officers, appointed by and serving under the President, have no right to remain in office after losing the President’s trust. The brief also makes clear that “cause” for removal includes misconduct, neglect, or refusal to carry out lawful policy—not just acts committed while in office.
“The President must have the authority to remove officials who refuse to execute his agenda or who betray public trust,” said Gene Hamilton, President of America First Legal. “No official has a personal property right in wielding government power. The Constitution entrusts the executive power to the President, and the courts must respect that design.”
For more than two centuries, the Supreme Court has recognized that the President’s removal power is essential to maintaining constitutional order. AFL’s brief calls on the Court to reaffirm that principle and prevent the judiciary from entrenching a permanent, unaccountable administrative class beyond the reach of the voters.
Read the full brief here.
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