A US federal judge approved President Donald Trump’s plan to reduce the federal workforce through a deferred resignation program, as reported by the Associated Press.
This ruling comes amidst rising tensions between the judiciary and the Trump administration following several legal setbacks.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt commented, “This shows that lawfare will not ultimately prevail over the will of the 77 million Americans who supported President Trump.”
Judge George O’Toole Jr. stated that the unions that sued over the program lacked legal standing. Despite the unions’ request to halt sign-ups, over 65,000 federal employees had enrolled by Friday, according to Bloomberg.
The program, introduced shortly after Trump’s second term began on January 28, allows federal employees to resign in exchange for eight months of severance pay and retained benefits until September. Employees had a deadline of February 6 to decide.
However, the memo warned that future downsizing was possible for those who chose not to resign. The offer was available to about two million federal employees but excluded military personnel, US Postal Service employees, and those in specific exempt positions.
