A federal judge heard arguments this afternoon on whether to block Donald Trump‘s order to fire three members of the Corporation For Public Broadcasting board, including Sony’s Tom Rothman, as well as Laura Ross and Diane Kaplan.
U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss did not issue a ruling after the 90-minute meeting, but said that he would have one before the next meeting of the CPB board on June 10.
At stake is Trump’s effort to zero out federal funding for PBS and NPR, as CPB distributes federal funds to public TV and radio stations, and a smaller share for programming on the networks.
The CPB sued after the three board members received terse emails last month informing them that their positions were being terminated.
CPB argued that it is an independent, non-profit corporation set up by Congress to protect it from government direction or control. Although the president appoints members of the CPB board, that does not allow him to have them removed once they are confirmed by the Senate, the corporation’s attorneys wrote.
In a brief filed last week, the administration argued that even though the corporation was not set up as a government agency, it acts as a government entity. They argued that if the president is given authority to appoint members, he can fire them, too.
The government’s attorneys wrote, “The president’s role in selecting Board members ties his reputation and faithful execution of statutory duties to their performance and service on the board. The president must therefore be able to supervise Board members and remove them if necessary.”
At the hearing, though, the judge expressed some concern that the president’s action was motivated by a desire to hold sway over the board. Congress, he noted, was “very clear” in setting up the CPB that the executive branch “keeps its hands off when it comes to content.” He noted that “the power to remove is the power to control.”
In their briefs, CPB’s legal team wrote, “Defendants’ argument can be summarized as follows: if the President can appoint, he can remove. This position, of course, would entitle the President to remove this very Court from its position. But Defendants’ argument also defies the plain text of the statute authorizing the creation of CPB as a nonprofit corporation, Congress’s plain purpose in authorizing the creation of CPB to be free from governmental control, and, the President’s express language in signing the legislation authorizing CPB.”
The CPB received a $535 million allocation for this fiscal year, with more than two thirds going to public radio and television stations.
After he fired members of the board, Trump then ordered the CPB to eliminate funding for PBS and NPR. But with Trump’s removal of three board members, the CPB board has just two members. The CPB has contended that the board cannot operate as there is not a quorum. An additional four seats on the board were already vacant.
The CPB legal team wrote, “No corporation can properly function when its heart—its board of directors —is not beating. Decisions cannot be made, policy cannot be determined, and all actions are potentially called into question. It is easy for agency employees to dismiss these core issues, but for those in the day-to-day life of a corporation, they are critical and immediate. Even more so when a company such as CPB faces existential questions of funding and assertions of authority that require balancing of clear congressional directives with new assertions of executive authority.”
But the judge also expressed skepticism over some of CPB’s arguments. He expressed doubts that Washington, D.C.’s law governing non-profits actually rendered the board unable to function. He also wondered why the CPB didn’t just continue to operate with its five-member board and wait for the administration to challenge any of their actions.
More to come.
Source link
