Strict Scrutiny SCOTUS Is About to Turbocharge Presidential Power
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Dec 15, 2025 The hosts dive into Trump v. Slaughter, exploring how it could reshape the administrative state by giving the president power to fire independent agency heads. They analyze the implications of overruling significant precedents and discuss the legal theatrics of the oral arguments. There's a critical look at the unitary executive theory and its potential to undermine democracy. Additionally, they tackle campaign finance challenges and dissect a contentious death penalty case, all while sharing amusing anecdotes from the courtroom.
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Court Poised To End Agency Independence
- The Court appears poised to overrule Humphrey's Executor and erase a century of limits on presidential removal power.
- That shift would destabilize independent agencies and concentrate executive control across the administrative state.
Political Control Threatens Regulatory Enforcement
- Removing statutory protections for multi-member commissions would let presidents staff agencies with political loyalists.
- That threatens consumer protection, antitrust enforcement, and agency litigation against powerful corporations.
FTC Settlement After Staff Changes
- Melissa Murray recounts how the FTC investigated Amazon's Prime enrollment and later settled after a personnel shift at the FTC.
- She links that settlement and other actions to elite influence and the risk of a compliant FTC.
