A US federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from firing workers during the government shutdown, saying the cuts appeared to be politically motivated and were being carried out without much thought.
US District Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco repeatedly pressed the assistant US attorney to explain the administration’s rationale for the more than 4,100 layoff notices that started going out on Friday even though furloughed workers cannot access their work emails and there are no human resources specialists to assist with next steps.
“It is very much ready, fire, aim on most of these programmes, and it has a human cost,” she said. “It is a human cost that cannot be tolerated.”
She granted a temporary restraining order blocking the job cuts, saying she believed the evidence would ultimately show the cuts were illegal and in excess of authority.
Asked for comment, the White House referred The Associated Press to the Office of Managemen​A US federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from firing workers during the government shutdown, saying the cuts appeared to be politically motivated and were being carried out without much thought.
US District Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco repeatedly pressed the assistant US attorney to explain the administration’s rationale for the more than 4,100 layoff notices that started going out on Friday even though furloughed workers cannot access their work emails and there are no human resources specialists to assist with next steps.
“It is very much ready, fire, aim on most of these programmes, and it has a human cost,” she said. “It is a human cost that cannot be tolerated.”
She granted a temporary restraining order blocking the job cuts, saying she believed the evidence would ultimately show the cuts were illegal and in excess of authority.
Asked for comment, the White House referred The Associated Press to the Office of Managemen ​Latest News [ SOBAN NEWS: International and National ]
