Prof. Nick Bednar ’16 Quoted by Time About the Legality of Trump’s Moves

Professor Nick Bednar ’16 was quoted by Time about Donald Trump’s early actions and their legality. His administration’s most recent actions — attempting to dismantle independent agencies, granting private individuals access to sensitive government systems, and offering unprecedented federal employee buyouts — are already triggering legal challenges and intense debate over the limits of presidential power. Regarding the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which Trump signaled to effectively shut down the agency by stripping away its independence and placing it under State Department control, Prof. Bednar said that USAID’s current legal status as an independent entity was solidified through the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 that restricts the president’s ability to abolish the agency unilaterally. Any attempt to dissolve USAID, Prof. Bednar said, would require new legislation from Congress. “The Clinton Administration chose to enshrine USAID as an independent agency, and the authority to reorganize it has now lapsed. The president has no authority to reorganize USAID at this point.”