The Trump administration dismissed two Democrats on the U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, in the latest example of the White House asserting control over U.S. agencies.
The commissioners, Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, said they got communication from the White House informing them of their dismissal. The five-member FTC enforces antitrust and consumer protection laws, including those related to the privacy of financial information and children online.
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“The president just illegally fired me,” Bedoya said in a social media post. “This is corruption plain and simple.”
“Today the President illegally fired me from my position as a Federal Trade Commissioner, violating the plain language of a statute and clear Supreme Court precedent,” Slaughter said in an emailed statement. “Why? Because I have a voice. And he is afraid of what I’ll tell the American people.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The FTC declined to comment.
“Your continued service on the FTC is inconsistent with my Administration’s priorities. Accordingly, I am removing you from office,” the email said, according to a copy viewed by Bloomberg.
The firings are the latest by Trump to challenge a 90-year legal precedent that shields members of independent agencies — part of his administration’s move to gain greater influence across the government.
Reshaping Agencies
Since taking office in January, Trump has dismissed other members of independent agencies, including a Democratic commissioner from the National Labor Relations Board, and two Democrats on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. He also fired the Democratic members of an independent intelligence review board created in the wake of Sept. 11 terror attacks, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.
Former NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox has sued over her removal, and a federal court ordered her reinstated. The Justice Department is appealing.
Removing the Democrats leaves the FTC, which has a staff of more than 1,200, with two Republican commissioners — Chair Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Melissa Holyoak. Trump has nominated a third Republican, Mark Meador, to fill the vacancy left when FTC Chair Lina Khan, a Biden appointee, stepped down. Meador’s nomination has advanced in the Senate but still requires a full chamber vote.
Bedoya was nominated by former President Joe Biden and joined the commission in May 2022 for a term that expires in September 2026. Slaughter arrived in 2018 during the first Trump administration and was later confirmed to a second term through September 2029.
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