Fired Biden holdover Hampton Dellinger can keep his job for now, after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to immediately act on President Trump’s emergency application in a 5-page order issued Friday evening.
President Trump fired Hampton Dellinger, Special Counsel for the Office of Special Counsel (not to be confused with a special counsel appointed as a federal prosecutor), a couple of weeks ago.
Shortly after the firing, Judge Amy Berman Jackson sided with Hampton Dellinger, issued an administrative stay, and allowed him to keep his job.
Hampton Dellinger will keep his job for now after the Supreme Court declined to act immediately, as the TRO is set to expire in a few days (February 26).
The Supreme Court is holding Trump’s emergency request “in abeyance,” which means that the court could decide on a later date.
Emboldened by the Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene, Hampton Dellinger is now attacking President Trump’s decision to terminate “probationary” employees.
In a statement released Monday, Hampton Dellinger argued that some of Trump’s firings of probationary employees may be illegal.
“Last Friday, Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger filed initial requests to ‘stay,’ or pause, the apparently impermissible terminations of six probationary employees across various executive branch agencies. The requests, filed with the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), seek a 45-day stay of the terminations because there are reasonable grounds to believe that agencies engaged in prohibited personnel practices (PPPs) under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(12) by terminating the employees in violation of federal laws and regulations governing probationary terminations and reductions in force,” Hampton Dellinger’s office said.
“Since the Civil Service Reform Act was passed in 1978, the merit system principles have guided how federal government agencies hire, manage, and, if necessary, remove federal employees. These principles establish that all federal employees, including those in a probationary status, should be evaluated based on individual performance,” Dellinger said.
“Firing probationary employees without individualized cause appears contrary to a reasonable reading of the law, particularly the provisions establishing rules for reductions in force. Because Congress has directed that OSC ‘shall’ protect government employees from PPPs, I believe I have a responsibility to request a stay of these actions while my agency continues to investigate further the apparent violation of federal personnel laws,” he added.
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