Trump illegally removed member of board that protects government employees, judge rules
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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump unlawfully removed a member of a federal office that protects government employees from partisan interference, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.
U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras granted a permanent injunction reinstating Cathy Harris to the Merit Systems Protection Board, delivering the Trump administration another legal defeat as they attempt to reshape the federal workforce.
Contreras found that Harris’ removal broke the law because Trump failed to provide cause for her removal when the White House communicated last month that her role had been terminated in a one-sentence, late-night email. Contreras noted that Harris had actually been “efficient and effective” in her role, clearing the board’s massive 3,800-case backlog.
“Because the President did not indicate that he sought to remove Harris for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office, his attempt to terminate her was unlawful and exceeded the scope of his authority,” Contreras wrote.
Harris, the board’s chairman, was nominated by then-President Joe Biden in January 2022 for a term not set to expire until March 2028. She was confirmed by the Senate in May 2022. Contreras’ ruling says Harris must now remain in the role through the end of her term, unless she is removed for cause.
The board only consists of three members, with the law stating no more than two can be from the same political party. In removing Harris, Trump had announced the Republican member, Henry Kerner, would take over the role as chair. Raymond Limon, also a Democrat like Harris, served as vice chair until he resigned last week on the final day of his term.
Trump’s attempt to remove Harris comes as the Merit System Protection Board — a little-known office that protects federal employees from abuses by management and prohibited practices — grows in significance as the Trump administration slashes thousands of federal employees. Some judges have turned down lawsuits by noting that the correct avenue for the employees’ claims would be the Merit System Protection Board, rather than a federal court.
On Saturday, another federal judge issued a permanent injunction reinstating special counsel Hampton Dellinger, who was similarly removed without cause by the Trump administration.
(WASHINGTON) — Second lady Usha Vance will be part of a delegation traveling to Greenland this week, after President Donald Trump’s repeated statements that the United States should own and control the semiautonomous Danish territory.
Vance’s office announced the trip on Sunday, describing it as one dedicated to learning about Greenlandic culture with stops at historical sties and its national dogsled race.
Two days after Vance’s office announced the trip, Vice President J.D. Vance said he would also be part of the delegation.
“There was so much excitement around Usha’s visit to Greenland this Friday that I decided that I didn’t want her to have all that fun by herself,” he said in a video posted to X. “And so I’m going to join her! I’m going to visit some of our guardians in the Space Force on the northwest coast of Greenland and also just check what’s going on with the security there of Greenland.”
White House national security adviser Mike Waltz and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright will be joining her, the National Security Council confirmed to ABC News.
“The U.S. has a vested security interest in the Arctic region and it should not be a surprise the National Security Advisor and Secretary of Energy are visiting a U.S. Space Base to get first-hand briefings from our service members on the ground,” National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes said in a statement.
Greenland’s Prime Minister Mute Egede, in a statement to Greenland’s Sermitsiaq newspaper, called the upcoming visit part of a “very aggressive American pressure against the Greenlandic community” and called for the international community to step in to rebuke it.
Asked Monday whether the second lady’s visit to Greenland is a provocation of Denmark, Trump said no.
“This is friendliness, not provocation,” Trump said after a Cabinet meeting. “We’re dealing with a lot of people from Greenland that would like to see something happen with respect to their being properly protected and properly taken care of. If they’re calling us, we’re not calling them.
Trump renewed his calls for Greenland to join the U.S. and said that it is a matter of national security.
“They really like the idea because they have been somewhat abandoned, as you know. They haven’t been taken well, good care of. And I think Greenland is going to be something that maybe is in our future,” Trump said.
The president reintroduced his first-term suggestion for U.S. ownership of Greenland, the world’s largest island and a semiautonomous territory within Denmark, during the presidential transition. It again prompted Greenland officials to emphasize the island territory is not for sale.
His son Donald Trump Jr. visited Greenland in early January, weeks before the inauguration. Trump Jr. said it was a personal visit and that he was not meeting with officials, though the president still celebrated it and alluded to a “deal” that he said “must happen.”
At one point, he notably declined to rule out military force to acquire Greenland.
Trump officials have pointed to Greenland as a key interest for national security as China and Russia ramp up activity in the Arctic. Greenland is also rich in valuable minerals, including rare earth minerals — the accession of which has become part of Trump’s foreign policy agenda.
In his joint address to Congress earlier this month, Trump said his administration needed Greenland for “international world security.”
“And I think we’re going to get it. One way or the other, we’re going to get it,” Trump said.
The vice president echoed the president’s statements on Tuesday, saying, “Unfortunately leaders in both America and in Denmark I think ignored Greenland for far too long. That’s been bad for Greenland.”
“It’s also been bad for the security of the entire world,” J.D. Vance added. “We think we can take things in a different direction. So I’m going to go check it out.”
Trump’s interest in Greenland comes as he’s pushed similar land grabs of Canada and the Panama Canal. Amid a trade war with Canada, Trump has called for America’s northern ally to become the 51st state, though his nominee to be the U.S. ambassador to Canada has noted that it’s a sovereign state.
Ahead of her visit to Greenland on Thursday, the second lady released a video saying she was going to “celebrate the long history of mutual respect and cooperation between our nations and to express hope that our relationship will only grow stronger in the coming years.”
The National Security Council said Waltz and Wright “also look forward to experiencing Greenland’s famous hospitality and are confident that this visit presents an opportunity to build on partnerships that respects Greenland’s self-determination and advances economic cooperation.
“This is a visit to learn about Greenland, its culture, history, and people and to attend a dogsled race the United States is proud to sponsor, plain and simple,” the National Security Council said in its statement.
Greenland’s prime minister, in a Facebook post, said the second lady’s trip “cannot be seen only as a private visit.”
Egede added, “It should also be said in a bold way that our integrity and democracy must be respected, without any external disturbance.”
ABC News’ Hannah Demissie, Fritz Farrow, Molly Nagle and Michelle Stoddart contributed to this report.
(MEXICO) — The FBI extradited an alleged senior leader of the MS-13 gang who was on the agency’s “10 most wanted” list with the help of the Mexican government, FBI Director Kash Patel said Tuesday.
Patel said Mexican authorities arrested Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales — who Patel said is believed to be a “key senior leader” of the gang. Roman-Bardales is being extradited to the United States, Patel added.
Patel touted the arrest as a “major victory.”
“He was arrested in Mexico and is being transported within the U.S. as we speak, where he will face American justice,” Patel wrote in a post on X. “This is a major victory both for our law enforcement partners and for a safer America.”
Roman-Bardales, 47, has been charged with several offenses for “his alleged role in ordering numerous acts of violence against civilians and rival gang members, as well as his role in drug distribution and extortion schemes in the United States and El Salvador,” the FBI said.
A federal arrest warrant was issued for Roman-Bardales in a New York court in 2022 after he was charged with conspiracy to provide and conceal material support and resources to terrorists; narco-terrorism conspiracy; racketeering conspiracy; and alien smuggling conspiracy.
Mexican authorities got intelligence that Roman-Bardales was in Baxtla, Mexico. Mexican law enforcement was deployed to the area, where Roman-Bardales was identified and arrested, the FBI said.
Patel thanked Mexican partners for their help in bringing Roman-Bardales to the U.S.
“This crucial step enhances the safety of communities across America,” Patel said.
The arrest comes as President Donald Trump and his administration target gangs such as MS-13.
He discussed his efforts during his address to a joint session of Congress last month, mentioning the deaths of Jocelyn Nungaray — who was killed by two undocumented men from Venezuela — and Laken Riley — who was killed by an undocumented immigrant.
“All three savages charged with Jocelyn and Laken’s murders were members of the Venezuelan prison gang — the toughest gang, they say, in the world — known as Tren de Aragua. Two weeks ago, I officially designated this gang, along with MS-13 and the bloodthirsty Mexican drug cartels, as foreign terrorist organizations. They are now officially in the same category as ISIS, and that’s not good for them,” Trump said in his joint address to Congress.
Also, Trump’s administration is working to deport gang members from the U.S. Over the weekend, the Trump administration handed over more than 200 alleged gang members — including two top members of the Salvadoran MS-13 gang — to El Salvadoran authorities. The move has raised questions as to whether the deportations could be in violation of a federal judge’s order temporarily blocking the removal of Venezuelans pursuant to the administration’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act.
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump is set to address a joint session of Congress on Tuesday — his first speech to Congress of his second term.
His speech will be his fifth public address before a joint session of Congress, and comes at a time when Republicans hold a trifecta with a GOP president and majorities in both the House and the Senate.
Here’s what you need to know about the speech and how to watch.
When is it?
Trump will address a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on Tuesday, March 4, at 9 p.m. ET (8 p.m. CT; 6 p.m. PT).
House Speaker Mike Johnson invited Trump to deliver the joint address to Congress last month so that Trump could share his “America First vision for our legislative future,” the speaker wrote in his invitation.
How can I watch and stream?
ABC News will have special coverage of Trump’s speech from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET on ABC and ABC News Live, which streams on Disney+, Hulu and other digital platforms as well.
“World News Tonight” anchor and managing editor David Muir will lead the coverage and be joined by ABC News Live “Prime” anchor and “World News Tonight” Sunday anchor Linsey Davis, chief Washington correspondent and “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl, chief global affairs correspondent and “This Week” co-anchor Martha Raddatz, chief White House correspondent Mary Bruce, chief justice correspondent Pierre Thomas, chief business, economics and technology correspondent Rebecca Jarvis, senior political correspondent Rachel Scott, national correspondent Mireya Villarreal and multiplatform reporter Jay O’Brien.
ABC News Digital will have wall-to-wall coverage, including a live blog with up-to-the-minute commentary on the major themes of the address and response from ABC News’ team of experts, notable moments and key takeaways from the evening, and a fact check. 538 will have data-driven previews and reactions to the address, too.
What is an address to the joint session of Congress?
Since this speech will be Trump’s first during his second term, it’s not referred to as a “State of the Union” — although both the address to the joint session and State of the Union are effectively the same.
The address is called the State of the Union for the years that don’t include the president’s inauguration.
The speech is a presidential duty mandated in the Constitution, which calls for the president “from time to time to give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union.”
What is Trump expected to say?
Trump, like other presidents, will take the opportunity to discuss his agenda.
Since taking office, Trump has been aggressive in pushing his priorities, which include curbing what he sees as wasteful government spending through federal job cuts.
He will likely discuss those efforts as well as his goals with immigration, foreign policy and the economy.
On Monday morning, Trump posted on his social media network that the speech will be “big” and he will “tell it like it is.”
Who will be there?
Trump’s speech will bring all branches of government together as he is joined by members of Congress and Supreme Court justices.
The speaker of the House and the vice president sit behind the president while he speaks. This speech will mark the first time Vice President JD Vance will be seated behind Trump for the address. During his previous administration, former Vice President Mike Pence was seated behind him.
During his last State of the Union address in 2020, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi memorably ripped up a copy of Trump’s speech just as he finished.
Invited guests also attend the event. The White House and members of Congress typically invite guests with specific backgrounds and stories that are important to them both personally and politically — people they want to thank, to honor or even to highlight a particular issue.
The White House has not yet released its list of invited guests.
Who is speaking for the Democratic Party?
Each year, the opposing party has a televised response to the president’s message. This year, Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin will deliver the Democratic response following Trump’s address to Congress.
“The public expects leaders to level with them on what’s actually happening in our country. From our economic security to our national security, we’ve got to chart a way forward that actually improves people’s lives in the country we all love, and I’m looking forward to laying that out,” Slotkin, a freshman senator, said in a statement.
Slotkin is a political survivor who won her Senate seat in November by less than 20,000 votes, even though Trump carried the state on the presidential level.
The former CIA analyst and Pentagon official also served two terms in the House, after flipping a suburban Detroit seat in 2018. Trump won her district by 4 points in 2016 and lost it by .5 points in 2020.
Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, will deliver the Spanish language response to Trump. He’s the first Dominican American — and formerly undocumented immigrant — to serve in Congress.
ABC News’ Benjamin Siegel contributed to this report.
