The Supreme Court on Wednesday barred President Donald Trump from replacing a top official at the Library of Congress, deferring a decision on his emergency appeal until it resolves a pair of related cases.
The move means that Shira Perlmutter will remain the director of the US Copyright Office for now.
Justice Clarence Thomas, a member of the court’s conservative wing, said he would have granted Trump’s request to allow Perlmutter to be removed while the case is litigated.
The Supreme Court has repeatedly allowed the president to temporarily remove – and therefore control – agencies on the periphery of the executive branch. But the latest case involved a new twist: A government entity that has the word “Congress” in its title and that Perlmutter argued was part of the legislative branch.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
