BOMBSHELL NYT report: Trump PRESSURED board tasked with protecting civil servants

New York Times Investigative reporter Michael Schmidt joins Morning Joe to discuss his latest reporting on the alleged White House efforts to influence the Merit Systems Protection Board, an agency responsible for protecting federal civil service employees from unfair firings. Schmidt reports that a MSP Board decision in March backed President Trump’s claim that he has broad authority to reshape the executive branch as he wants. The ruling broke with decades of precedent, accepting the White House’s argument that Article II of the Constitution gives Trump the power to dismiss officials without due process. By that theory, he can essentially erase civil service protections, even for public servants whose engagement with the law often puts them at odds with President Trump’s political aims. Schmidt reports it came after the Trump administration leveled a concerted pressure campaign on the board in public and private, according to people with knowledge of the process. The Morning Joe panel discusses.

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