Latest news with #UnitaryExecutiveTheory
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's how the Supreme Court could weaken American exceptionalism in financial markets
The top court's vote to allow President Donald Trump to remove the leaders of two independent federal agencies has repercussions for financial markets, according a note from Jefferies. While justices gave the Federal Reserve more protection, the Supreme Court's stance in favor of more presidential power could make U.S. assets less attractive, analysts said. U.S. supremacy in financial markets is already at risk as President Donald Trump wages his trade war, and Wall Street is warning the Supreme Court could threaten it further. The top court's vote on Thursday to allow President Donald Trump to remove the leaders of two independent federal agencies has repercussions for financial markets, according a note from Jefferies. While justices gave the Federal Reserve some protection, the Supreme Court's stance in favor of more executive power could make the U.S. less attractive, analysts said. 'The Court's order suggests they'll likely support expanded presidential power in upcoming decisions, giving credence & support to the Unitary Executive Theory,' the note said. 'We believe expanded Presidential power is bearish for risk assets & will further erode the concept of American exceptionalism in markets.' The Unitary Executive Theory argues that the president has sole authority within the executive branch. That means that not only does the White House have the ability to fire agency heads, it can also impound money allocated by Congress. The issue reached the Supreme Court after Gwynne Wilcox, who was ousted from the National Labor Relations Board in January, and Cathy Harris, who was booted from the Merit Systems Protection Board in February, sued the Trump administration. Both agencies are considered independent, meaning members serve until their terms are up and can only be removed for issues such as misconduct or breach of duty. While the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to reinstate Wilcox and Harris, the Supreme Court's vote on Thursday blocked the move, granting a stay that will allow Trump's firings to stand while the case works its way through lower courts again. For now, Trump can fire officials without cause, breaking with 90 years of historical precedent. 'We believe that the most important, structural changes in how the US Government functions will be decided by the US Supreme Court on questions related to executive power and executive authority,' the Jefferies analysts said. In addition to the removal of leaders of independent agencies, interpreting presidential powers more broadly also has implications for imposing tariffs, firing federal workers, and deregulating the economy outside traditional mechanisms, the note pointed out. 'We believe that Thursday's Supreme Court order portends expanded executive power, in line with the Unitary Executive Theory, which will lead to investors putting a higher risk premium on US assets going forward, due to increased policy variability,' Jefferies warned. Not long ago, the U.S. economy and financial markets looked unstoppable, but Wall Street has dimmed its view on so-called American exceptionalism since Trump began pressing his tariff agenda. The 'Liberation Day' shock accelerated that bearish sentiment, and mounting worries about deficits have given foreign investors even more reasons to turn away from U.S. markets. Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz, said U.S. exceptionalism has been 'put on pause,' though it's too early to say if the damage is irreversible. For George Saravelos, head of FX research at Deutsche Bank, the dollar's decline after a 20-year Treasury bond auction drew tepid demand this past week was a red flag. 'To us this is a clear signal of a foreign buyer's strike on US assets and the associated US fiscal risks we have been warning for some time,' he wrote in a note. 'At the core of the problem is that foreign investors are simply no longer willing to finance US twin deficits at current level of prices.' This story was originally featured on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Wall Street Journal
24-05-2025
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Supreme Court Order Casts Fresh Doubt on U.S. Exceptionalism, Jefferies Says
The Supreme Court granted President Trump's emergency request to fire federal commissioners but signaled the Federal Reserve was off limits from White House interference. Strategists at Jefferies nonetheless see bearish implications, arguing investors will likely demand higher risk premiums for investing in U.S. assets due to "increased policy variability." "The court's order suggests they'll likely support expanded presidential power in upcoming decisions, giving credence and support to the Unitary Executive Theory," the Jefferies team said in a note to clients.
Newsweek
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
How Donald Trump's First 100 Days Went 'Beyond' Project 2025
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Both sides of the political spectrum can now agree: President Donald Trump is implementing many of Project 2025's policies, "beyond" even what some imagined possible. Throughout the 2024 campaign cycle, candidate Donald Trump had denied any connection with Project 2025, but after 100 days in office, the president's policies reflect many of the positions put forth in the 900-page document. Ben Olinsky, senior vice president of structural reform and governance at the liberal-leaning Center for American Progress (CAP), told Newsweek that some Trump policies are even going "beyond" the parameters laid out in Project 2025. Project 2025 Director Paul Dans himself, who in 2024 left the Heritage Foundation—the think tank behind the conservative manifesto— agrees, saying the Trump administration's policies are "beyond his wildest dreams." "We had hoped, those of us who worked putting together Project 2025, that the next conservative president would seize the day, but Trump is seizing every minute of every hour. I'm not sure that you'd be able to implement Project 2025 without Donald Trump's ability to bring people together and Elon Musk's ability to focus the direction of the work," Dans told Politico. The Heritage Foundation and the White House have been contacted via email for comment. President Donald Trump at the White House, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Washington. President Donald Trump at the White House, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Washington. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo What Is Project 2025? Project 2025 outlines a comprehensive blueprint for policy, personnel, training and operational planning to revitalize a conservative agenda across various federal agencies. It has 30 chapters dedicated to creating a roadmap for limited government and implementing conservative legislative values. The manifesto is broken up into five sections: Taking the Reigns of Government, The Common Defense, The General Welfare, The Economy, and Independent Regulatory Agencies. There are proposals to end birthright citizenship, change voting rights, and reverse the legality of the abortion pill mifepristone. The blueprint operates along the idea of the Unitary Executive Theory, meaning the president should have total control of the executive branch of the federal government. Unitary Executive Theory The power needed to fully carry out the proposals in Project 2025 stems from the idea of the Unitary Executive Theory, the notion that "the independence of any senior or inferior officers of the government really is notional, and that really the President gets to control everything," explained Olinsky. "Even if, for example, you have secretaries that have been confirmed by the Senate and should have some independence to make certain judgments. the president wants, anyone in the executive branch should do," said Olinsky. "We've seen a wholesale grabbing of control of the Department of Justice to implement the President's program and, frankly, carry out his grievances and grudges and retaliate against folks and also use the threat of prosecution in order to be able to make deals with folks," he added. One example of this, said Olinsky, occurred with New York Mayor Eric Adams' bribery indictment. Adams was indicted in 2024 on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, wire fraud, soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals, and soliciting and accepting a bribe. The mayor pleaded not guilty to all charges and consistently denied any wrongdoing. Trump's DOJ has now decided to drop charges, but in a way where it could always bring the charges back up again, says Olinsky, who believes this is to make Adams a partner in the president's immigration agenda. Another form of the Trump administration directly aligning with the unitary executive theory is its explicit push to relitigate Humphrey's Executor, the 1953 Supreme Court ruling that granted protection to federal workers from political persecution. As Olinksy puts it: "The view is the president is the elected leader of the executive branch, the one, literally, the one elected leader, along with the vice president of the executive branch. And so really [he should] dictate the entire direction of the executive branch." "President Trump has gone beyond what was even in Project 2025," said Olinsky, referencing his targeting of universities and law firms who have represented people he does not like. "It will be very hard to undo," said Olinsky. "Because some of this damage means that people have left the federal government and they're not going to come lost a lot of talent. You've lost a lot of respect and trust." Policies Mass Deportations and Ending Birthright Citizenship Trump's signature policy on immigration—mass deportation of millions of illegal immigrants—put forth during the campaign was not explicitly detailed in Project 2025, which simply called to "thoroughly enforce immigration laws." It also calls to increase the federal budget for border control, and allow Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) to carry out more "expedited removals," which are usually only done at the border, raising concern among immigration groups that ICE would raid schools and hospitals. In January, the Trump administration revoked a policy that largely prohibited ICE from conducting operations in "sensitive" areas such as schools, houses of worship and hospitals. Project 2025 also calls for the reimplementation of a "denaturalization unit," which would revoke citizenship from people who are deemed to have "obtained citizenship through fraud or other illicit means." In an executive order passed on his first day, the president pushed to allocate resources to efforts to remove citizenship from people who obtained it "unlawfully." Citizenship also appears in Project 2025 as a question conservative lawmakers want to add to the census. Voting rights experts fear adding this question to the census will result in undercounting people which will then impact Congressional redistricting. Anti I.C.E protesters gathering in Foley Square to demand the Trump Administration stop deportations on February 13, 2025 in New York City. Anti I.C.E protesters gathering in Foley Square to demand the Trump Administration stop deportations on February 13, 2025 in New York City. Katie Godowski/MediaPunch /IPX Eliminating the Department of Education The opening sentence of Project 2025's chapter on the Department of Education reads: "Federal education policy should be limited and, ultimately, the federal Department of Education should be eliminated." On March 20, President Trump signed an executive order to "eliminate" the department, which used language that was similar to talking points made in Project 2025. The manifesto states: "Empowering families to choose among a diverse set of education options is key to reform and improved outcomes, and it can be achieved without establishing a new federal program." And, the executive order states: "Our Nation's bright future relies on empowered families, engaged communities, and excellent educational opportunities for every child. Unfortunately, the experiment of controlling American education through Federal programs and dollars—and the unaccountable bureaucracy those programs and dollars support—has plainly failed our children, our teachers, and our families." Proponents of the department say it exists to ensure that students are not discriminated against, that they have access to the learning tools they are guaranteed by right, and that schools abide by civil rights law. LGBTQ+ Rights and Protections Project 2025 also targets what it calls "the bullying LGBTQ+ agenda," calling for the end of its promotion by the federal government. The manifesto's foreword paints the picture of an America where "children suffer the toxic normalization of transgenderism with drag queens and pornography invading their school libraries. "The next conservative President must make the institutions of American civil society hard targets for woke culture warriors. This starts with deleting the terms sexual orientation and gender of every federal rule, agency regulation, contract, grant, regulation, and piece of legislation that exists," it later says. And, on his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order titled "Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government." He has also signed orders banning transgender people from the military and has threatened to rescind federal funds from institutions that allow transgender athletes to compete on female sports teams. The Trump administration has been involved in a legal battle with the state of Maine, which refused to sign an agreement to ban transgender athletes from participating in girls' and women's sports. The Department of Education referred Maine to the Department of Justice in response. A person holds a sign during a pro-transgender rights protest outside of Seattle Children's Hospital, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, in Seattle. A person holds a sign during a pro-transgender rights protest outside of Seattle Children's Hospital, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, in Seattle. Lindsey Wasson/AP Photo Eliminating DEI Requirements Similarly to curbing protections for transgender people, the Trump administration has aligned almost exactly with Project 2025 when it comes to targeting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts. Project 2025 said the government should "issue a directive to cease promotion of the DEI agenda" and "eliminate funding for partners that promote discriminatory DEI practices and consider debarment in egregious cases." It also calls for the president to pass an executive order to account for "how federal programs/grants spread DEI/CRT/ gender ideology." President Trump took this one step further and initiated a full federal funding freeze to ensure that federal money was going to programs that align with his priorities. A January executive order mandated an end to government-funded DEI efforts and directing that employees in DEI-related roles be phased out. The administration has also exerted pressure on private sector employers to similarly shift their focus away from DEI initiatives. It even went as far as issuing a directive applying Trump's rollback of DEI policies to American federal contractors abroad, which include France, Belgium, Spain and Denmark. It warned that DEI programs could disqualify firms from U.S. federal contracts—even those based abroad. Targeting Abortion Project 2025 calls for the elimination of the "week-after-pill" and for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to "reverse its approval of chemical abortion drugs because the politicized approval process was illegal from the start." The manifesto argues that since its approval over two decades ago, mifepristone "has been associated with 26 deaths of pregnant mothers, over a thousand hospitalizations, and thousands more adverse events." However, the World Health Organization and several other scientific bodies have said after countless studies, that mifepristone is a safe and effective way to terminate pregnancies when taken with a second pill, misoprostol. During his Senate confirmation hearing, Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, said: "President Trump has asked me to study the safety of mifepristone." White House Appointments Several Project 2025 contributors or authors are now part of the executive branch. Russell Vought Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought referred to the office he now runs in Project 2025 as "a President's air-traffic control system with the ability and charge to ensure that all policy initiatives are flying in sync and with the authority to let planes take off and, at times, ground planes that are flying off course." Brendan Carr Now head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Carr wrote the Project 2025 chapter on the FCC, where he said: "The FCC should engage in a serious top-to-bottom review of its regulations and take steps to rescind any that are overly cumbersome or outdated." He has also said that "TikTok poses a serious and unacceptable risk to America's national security." "There clearly has been an interest in more aggressively using the Federal Communications Commission," said Olinsky. "And what Carr has very quickly done is started to say that there should be investigations into media companies because of, basically, the content of what they're putting out there, the content of political interviews." Tom Homan Border czar Tom Homan is a listed contributor to Project 2025. He has been enacting several of the border and ICE policies that are listed in the manifesto. Karoline Leavitt Although she is not listed as an author or contributor to Project 2025, press secretary Leavitt features in a training video as part of Project 2025's Presidential Administration Academy, which according to nonprofit news organization ProPublica was aimed at political appointees, de facto in the Trump administration.
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Full DC Circuit Unfires—For Now—NLRB, MSPB Board Members That Trump Lawlessly Axed
The full U.S. Court of Appeals for DC has reinstated a member of the National Labor Relations Board and a member of the Merit Systems Protection Board that President Donald Trump tried to fire earlier this year. The court split 7-4. The ruling — on a set of district court injunctions that paused the firings — is the latest in a back and forth over the fates of these two members of independent executive branch agency boards, a dispute that recently saw a three-judge panel of the DC Circuit allow the members to be fired, and that is likely Supreme Court-bound. Trump fired the two members, Cathy Harris of the Merit Systems Protection Board and Gwynne Wilcox of the National Labor Relations Board, in early February, moves that were quickly blocked at the district court level. The cases were later consolidated. At stake is a precedent, Humphreys Executor, the overturning of which would have far greater implications than just the makeup of the two boards. The Trump administration DOJ has been explicit that it is seeking to overturn a long line of jurisprudence, of which Humphreys Executor is a cornerstone, protecting the independence of such agencies within the executive branch; these agencies are run by bipartisan boards, the members of which are confirmed by the Senate. Should the Supreme Court overturn Humphreys Executor, it would open the door to bringing these agencies — which include the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Communications Commission, the Federal Elections Commission and dozens of others — more fully under Trump's sway. Doing so would be a key victory for a faction of the conservative legal movement, which has long pushed the Unitary Executive Theory, imagining a powerful executive branch over which the President has sole authority. Its a vision the Trump administration is already bringing to life, even before the Supreme Court has fully cleared the way. A 2-1 panel of the DC Circuit split in March over this question, with the two judge majority — comprised of a Trump appointee and a George H.W. Bush appointee — claiming that the Supreme Court had already sent clear signals that it intended to overturn Humphrey's Executor. In a brief opinion Monday, chief Judge Sri Srinivasan pushed back on that interpretation, writing that while the Supreme Court has chipped away at agency autonomy in other areas, it 'has repeatedly stated that it was not overturning the precedent established in Humphrey's Executor and Wiener for multimember adjudicatory bodies. Instead, the Supreme Court has, in its own words, left that precedent 'in place[.]'' 'The Supreme Court has repeatedly told the courts of appeals to follow extantSupreme Court precedent unless and until that Court itself changes it or overturns it,' continued Srinivasan, an Obama appointee. Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson and Justin Walker, the two who late last month were in the majority of the panel decision finding Humphreys Executor to be as good as overturned, dissented, and were joined by two others appointed by conservative presidents. One of them, Judge Neomi Rao, wrote her own dissent nodding to a sweeping view of presidential power — 'The Constitution vests all executive power in a single President […] The President has both the power and the responsibility to supervise and direct Executive Branch officers' as part of his mandate to ''take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed').' She also denounced the lower-court injunctions — recently a frequent recent topic of conservative ire — in an argument that turned the executive branch power grab on its head. 'Nothing in Anglo-American history supports the injunctive relief granted by the district court and restored by the en banc majority,' she wrote, later adding, 'These orders effectively reappoint officers removed by the President and direct all other Executive Branch officials to treat the removed officers as if they were still in office.' Read the full opinion below.
