US Supreme Court expands presidential power in 2025 term

In the 2025 term the 6‑3 conservative Supreme Court issued a series of rulings that broadened President Donald Trump’s authority over the federal bureaucracy.

The most consequential was Trump v. Slaughter, which overturned the 1935 Humphrey’s Executor precedent and gave the president the power to remove heads of independent agencies at will. The Court also allowed the president to fire an FTC commissioner while limiting that power over a Federal Reserve governor, a split that highlighted the Court’s nuanced approach.

Other 6‑3 decisions aligned with Trump’s agenda, including upholding bans on transgender athletes, narrowing the Voting Rights Act, and loosening limits on coordinated campaign spending. The term included 58 merits cases covering issues from school sports to citizenship.