A federal appeals court sided with the Trump administration, clearing the way to fire thousands of probationary workers across 18 federal agencies. In a 2-1 ruling, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals lifted a lower-court judge’s order to reinstate the fired employees. The three-judge panel concluded that the “coalition of Democratic attorneys general who brought the case appeared to lack legal standing to challenge the firings,” POLITICO noted. Appeals court lifts block on Trump administration firing thousands of probationary employees https://t.co/fLsiVGTzto — John Solomon (@jsolomonReports) April 9, 2025 From POLITICO: The appeals court’s 2-1 ruling came one day after the Supreme Court lifted another judge’s order blocking the dismissal of some of the same federal workers, also on standing grounds. That leaves no remaining legal impediment, for now, to the effort by Trump administration leaders to shrink the federal workforce by summarily firing large swaths of employees across nearly 20 major federal agencies. Judges Allison Rushing, a Trump appointee, and Harvie Wilkinson, a Reagan appointee, agreed that the Democratic attorneys general lacked standing. Judge DeAndrea Benjamin, a Biden appointee, dissented, arguing that the AGs had a legitimate basis to bring the lawsuit on behalf of their states. The 4th Circuit’s ruling scraps an April 1 order from U.S. District Judge James Bredar, a Maryland-based Obama appointee. Bredar concluded that the administration had defied laws requiring notice to the states before conducting mass layoffs. He initially ordered the Trump administration to reinstate fired probationary employees across 18 federal agencies nationwide, but later narrowed his order to reinstate only those employees who live or work in the states that filed suit. A federal appeals court paused a decision from a lower court and will allow President Donald Trump’s administration to move forward in firing thousands of probationary employees. https://t.co/9D9iPW5BfY https://t.co/9D9iPW5BfY — Forbes (@Forbes) April 9, 2025 From the Associated Press: The states could still seek further review as the lawsuit continues to play out. The Republican administration has argued that the states have no right to try to influence the federal government’s relationship with its own workers, but also had already reinstated some 15,000 workers to full duty or paid leave as the lawsuits played out, according to court documents. The appeals court order halts a decision from U.S. District Judge James Bredar in Baltimore, who was one of two judges appointed by Democratic presidents who found that the Trump administration violated federal laws in carrying out the terminations at 20 agencies in the states that sued. The Supreme Court blocked another order from U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco on Tuesday, finding that nonprofit groups lacked legal standing to sue over the firing of probationary workers. The case still has additional plaintiffs, however, and Alsup was weighing Wednesday whether to again order reinstatement on behalf of the state of Washington and labor groups.