US judge rules against Trump

WASHINGTON, Mar 02 (AFP): A federal judge ruled Saturday that limits on President Donald Trump's power to fire the head of an independent watchdog agency are constitutional, teeing up a likely Supreme Court showdown.

The case revolves around the White House's February 7 dismissal of Hampton Dellinger, chief of the Office of Special Counsel.

His small agency investigates whistleblower complaints and protects federal workers' rights, among various other roles, and could possibly be a significant player in pushing back against Trump and Elon Musk's efforts to fire swaths of federal employees.

District Judge Amy Berman Jackson had previously ordered Dellinger temporarily reinstated while she considered the case, but on Saturday issued a ruling that his dismissal had been "unlawful."

She said there were specific legal reasons for which the agency head could be fired by the president, but "the curt email from the White House informing the Special Counsel that he was terminated contained no reasons whatsoever."