John Yoo Celebrates ‘Most Important’ Supreme Court Ruling in 91 Years: Agencies Now ‘Fully Accountable’ to Trump

 

Legal expert John Yoo said the Supreme Court just made its “most important decision” in 91 years — a decision that he said made government agencies like the Federal Trade Commission now “fully accountable” to President Donald Trump.

Yoo joined America’s Newsroom on Fox News to discuss the slew of Supreme Court rulings that were released on Monday.

He said the 6-3 ruling in the Slaughter case — allowing Trump to fire FTC Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter — was monumental because it gave the president broad control over government agencies. It also opens the door for the FTC and other agencies to be eliminated entirely, he said.

“This decision is the, perhaps, the most important decision about the operation of the government since 1935,” Yoo said. He was referring to Humphrey’s Executor, which gave Congress the ability to limit the president’s control of government agencies.

“No longer will there be an FTC, FCC,” Yoo continued. “All those agencies were designed by Congress to be outside the president’s control, and the court says clearly that is not consistent with the vesting by the Founders of the executive power only in the president and none of these other [branches].”

Yoo explained a bit more a moment later.

“[Government agencies] will all be directly under the control of the president now,” he said. “So it almost doesn’t matter whether they are in the Treasury Department or in the State Department because the president now can give them orders and fire them if they don’t obey. That makes the head of Federal Trade Commission — which exercises enormous power over the economy — as fully accountable to the president as the Treasury secretary is, Scott Bessent.”

Yoo — a UC Berkeley law professor and former Justice Department attorney under President George W. Bush — added, “The point the court makes is — we elect the president. Not any of these other people. We elect the top of the branch and all the agencies underneath have to be accountable to someone that we the voters know and we the voters can hold responsible.”

SCOTUSBlog reported on the ruling:

More broadly, Monday’s decision was a major victory for proponents of the “unitary executive” theory – the idea that the president should have complete control over the executive branch. Under this theory, the president should be able to fire any member of the executive branch, and laws – like the one that the court struck down – that restrict his ability to do so violate the separation of powers.

Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts contended that “the President must have the assistance of officers he can trust. Although it is up to the Senate to decide whether to confirm those with whom the President would prefer to work, neither Congress nor the courts may saddle him with those with whom he cannot work. Subordinates who exercise the President’s power are subject to removal by him. Then, and only then, can they remain accountable to the President, and the President to the people.

Trump celebrated the decision on Monday morning, posting on Truth Social it was a “BIG WIN.”

“To show the importance of the Slaughter Case, 90 years of precedent has been COMPLETELY AND UNEQUIVOCALLY OVERRULED, greatly increasing Presidential Power at a time when it is most needed!” Trump said in a follow-up post. 

Watch above.

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