INV-038 · Money & ethics · Misuse of office
Firing of the whistleblower watchdog, Special Counsel Dellinger
Stage 5 of 5: Outcome (Firing took effect; lawsuit dropped) · Closed, settled, decided · Last development 6 Mar 2025
Trump fired Hampton Dellinger, head of the Office of Special Counsel, the independent agency that protects federal whistleblowers and enforces the Hatch Act, by a one-sentence email without a reason. The law allows removal only for "inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office." A judge ruled the firing illegal, but an appeals court let it take effect and Dellinger dropped his case.
The underlying question, whether Congress can protect such officials from removal, was never decided on appeal in this case.
- People
- Donald Trump, Hampton Dellinger, Office of Special Counsel
- Agencies
- White House, Office of Special Counsel
- Reviewed by
- Federal court (D.D.C.), D.C. Circuit, Supreme Court
Timeline
Dellinger drops his lawsuit, saying his odds before the Supreme Court were long. [2]
The D.C. Circuit stays the ruling, letting the firing take effect. That morning Dellinger had won reinstatement of about 6,000 probationary employees he found were unlawfully fired. [2]
Jackson rules the firing illegal, saying allowing it would give Trump "a constitutional license to bully officials in the executive branch into doing his will." DOJ appeals the same day. [1]
Judge Amy Berman Jackson temporarily reinstates him; on 21 Feb the Supreme Court declines to step in for now. [3]
The White House fires Dellinger by email, without giving a reason. [3]
Responses
- Justice Department: Argued the order keeping Dellinger in place encroached on the President's authority over officials serving in his administration. [1]
Who is acting on it
- Lawsuit Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger: Sued over his firing (12 Feb 2025, What happened next)
Sources
Cite this case
Public Trust Tracker. "Firing of the whistleblower watchdog, Special Counsel Dellinger" (INV-038). Last updated 6 Mar 2025. https://publictrusttracker.org/case/inv-038-firing-of-the-whistleblower-watchdog-special-counsel/
Suggest a fact check