'Politics over professionalism': Federal employees' union sues Trump over executive order
The largest union representing federal employees sued the Trump administration Wednesday to block an executive order that it alleges is aimed at politicizing the federal government by stripping federal workers of job protections.
The lawsuit was filed in a D.C. federal court by the American Federation of Government Employees. The union is challenging a Jan. 20 Trump executive order that claims to increase accountability for "policy-influencing positions" within the federal workforce by removing certain hiring and firing restrictions.
"This scheme seeks to put politics over professionalism, contrary to the laws and values that have definedour career civil service for more than a century," according to the lawsuit.
The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
The executive order largely reinstates an executive order Trump issued toward the end of his first administration, on Oct. 21, 2020. It also directs the Office of Personnel Management to rescind Biden administration regulations from April that strengthened federal workforce job protections.
In a news release Wednesday, the federation's national president, Everett Kelley, suggested Trump's order is about expanding his political control over the federal workforce.
“Together, we can stop the efforts to fire hundreds of thousands of experienced, hard-working Americans who have dedicated their careers to serving their country and prevent these career civil servants from being replaced with unqualified political flunkies loyal to the president, but not the law or Constitution," Kelley said.
The lawsuit accuses the administration of violating existing regulations and failing to go through the proper procedures – including providing notice of its plans and an opportunity for the public to comment – for issuing new regulations.
What the Trump administration means for you: Sign up for USA TODAY's On Politics newsletter.
The Trump administration appeared to anticipate being accused of politicization when it issued the executive order.
The employees and applicants impacted by the order "are not required to personally or politically support the current President or the policies of the current administration," the order states. "They are required to faithfully implement administration policies to the best of their ability, consistent with their constitutional oath and the vesting of executive authority solely in the President. Failure to do so is grounds for dismissal."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump sued over alleged plan to hire 'unqualified political flunkies'