A US judge has temporarily halted several federal agencies from going ahead with the mass dismissals of government employees ordered by President Donald Trump in February. US District Court Judge Susan Illston of California issued a two-week injunction on Friday, saying that the Trump administration’s actions to cut the federal workforce most likely needed the approval of Congress.
The Court holds the President probably has to seek Congressional acquiescence to command the changes he desires, and therefore issues a temporary restraining order to suspend large-scale reductions in force in the interim,” Illston wrote in the order.
Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has instructed federal agencies to draft sweeping plans to reduce workforces as part of broader efforts by the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to reduce the size of the federal government.
In an executive order signed on February 11, Trump ordered a “critical transformation of the Federal bureaucracy” and instructed agencies to thin out workers not labelled essential. A group of labour unions, non-profits and six city and county governments sued Trump, DOGE and federal agencies such as the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) last week, claiming that they had overstepped their authority by imposing the mass layoffs without congressional approval.
“The illegal effort by the Trump administration to reorganize the federal government has plunged agencies into disarray, disrupting vital services delivered throughout our country,” the plaintiffs, represented by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), stated in a joint statement, praising the judge’s temporary halt.
We all represent communities that have a deep stake in the effectiveness of the federal government — laying off federal workers and randomly reorganizing government functions doesn’t do that,” it said. Trump has quickly acted to terminate thousands of government workers this year and cut programs — hitting the US humanitarian aid agency USAID, diversity efforts throughout the government and numerous other offices.
But in a number of instances, judges have stymied or delayed his administration’s hallmark policy efforts, such as on immigration and overhauling government spending.
