Panic Spreads Across Washington, D.C. — They Will Lose 19 U.S. House Seats After Supreme Court Ruling Could Give…

Under federal law, CPSC commissioners can only be removed by the president for “neglect of duty or malfeasance in office.” Similar protections apply to a few other federal agencies and are ostensibly designed to shield them from direct political influence by the White House.

The commissioners, represented by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, had urged the justices to avoid involvement in the case. Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that lower courts continue to defy the Supreme Court’s direction and urged the justices to bypass the lower courts entirely and take up the CPSC case directly on their regular docket.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh said he would have gone further and cautioned that the Court’s inaction could lead to “extended uncertainty and confusion” over whether it intends to overturn the longstanding precedent.