Trump fired the only two Democrats on the five-member board that runs the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), one of the agencies responsible for enforcing laws that protect consumers and check corporate power. The president can only lawfully fire FTC commissioners – who serve seven-year terms – for incompetence or malfeasance. That's according to the statute that created the FTC, as well as a 1935 Supreme Court ruling that held President Franklin Roosevelt broke the law when he fired a Republican commissioner for opposing his agenda. Trump's team isn't claiming either malfeasance or incompetence..
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