"The greatest increase in presidential power in the last 100 years"

At 3:29 in the afternoon, the President of the United States sat alone behind the desk in the Oval Office. Only hours earlier, the Supreme Court had handed him one of the most dangerous expansions of presidential power in nearly a century, a decision one justice warned gave the presidency authority "unknown even to the English Crown." And with all of that new power resting beneath his firmly clasped hands, Donald Trump spent fourteen minutes signing an executive order about the right to repair cars, telling a story about people being arrested for fixing their vehicles before admitting, "That's not even believable."Based on the events of 6-29-2026The Breakdown:In a 6-3 decision in Trump v. Slaughter, the Supreme Court ruled the president can fire the leaders of independent federal agencies for any reason or no reason at allThe ruling overturned Humphrey's Executor, a 1935 precedent that protected independent agencies for 91 yearsWhat independent agencies are and why they existed: the FTC, NLRB, FCC, NRC, and others whose leaders could only be removed "for cause"Justice Sotomayor read her dissent from the bench, warning the ruling gives the president "a power unknown even to the English Crown against which the Founders revolted"Rebecca Slaughter, the fired FTC commissioner, warned of a president who can "reward his friends and punish his enemies with impunity"Trump's three Truth Social posts celebrating "the Greatest Increase in Presidential Power in the last 100 years"Why there is no longer continuity: every incoming president can now fire every agency head on day oneWhat this tells the world about the durability of any agreement or partnership with U.S. agenciesThe danger of installing loyalists at agencies regulating food safety, workplaces, financial markets, and nuclear plantsA separate 5-4 ruling gave Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook due process protection, carving out a Fed exceptionWhy Sotomayor called the reasoning "a half-baked theory of executive power"In Watson v. RNC, a 5-4 opinion by Barrett protected states counting mail-in ballots postmarked on time, a genuine victory for NovemberTrump calling that ruling "a tremendous loss" and naming five Republican senators as "Hold Outs"The Court declined to hear Trump's E. Jean Carroll appeal, leaving the finding that he sexually abused her intactTrump asked whether he would sign the bipartisan housing bill: "It's a yawn"The golden eagle Trump mounted on the White House, and the history of oversized eagle imagery in authoritarian regimesWe are four months and five days from the midterms. Taking back both chambers is about subpoena power, hearings, and building the record for impeachment and removal, of both Trump and Vance. Tonight I am not just warning that we have to move faster. I am saying it as a promise. Donald Trump loves to be the first to do things. He might just be the first president actually removed from office, and his vice president along with him. He has more power today than yesterday. But in four months, the American people speak.This commentary represents my personal opinions and analysis of matters of public concern, informed by publicly available information. Any references to individuals constitute opinion and commentary protected under the First Amendment.