Supreme Court Rules to Limit Presidential Appointments

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled to limit the president's authority to install some top-level officials as "acting" officials until confirmed by the Senate, The Washington Post reported.

The case concerns the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, which states the "first assistant" to a position could temporarily take over automatically, but this person cannot be both acting and nominated for the same position without first serving as a first assistant for 90 days. The majority opinion, written by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., found the statute does not allow anyone who has been nominated from taking over the position in an acting capacity.

The case concerned former President Barack Obama's elevating Lafe Solomon to acting general counsel of the National Labor Relations Board. Solomon had not served as a first assistant, but he was nominated to fill the role permanently. The administration argued in November three presidents had made over 100 appointments by following the government's interpretation, but Roberts ruled "Congress's failure to speak up does not fairly imply that it has acquiesced in the board's interpretation."

In her dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor argued the law did not intend to block the president from temporarily appointing a person and then nominating them to take over permanently.

"The court gives the provision a broader reach than the text can bear with no support from the history of, or practice under, the [law]," Sotomayor wrote.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg joined her in disagreement with the majority.

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