Share this story

US judge blocks Trump from firing federal workers on probation

(Reuters) — A federal judge on Tuesday said the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump cannot quickly fire thousands of probationary federal workers in 19 states and Washington, D.C., narrowing an earlier nationwide ruling.

ADVERTISING

U.S. District Judge James Bredar in Baltimore, Maryland, said that if federal agencies want to fire large numbers of probationary workers, they must follow the required procedures for conducting mass layoffs of government employees.

The administration failed to do so when it terminated about 24,500 people in February without notifying states and local governments in advance, he said. But Bredar said he only had the power to require the reinstatement of employees who either live or work in the mostly Democratic-led states that, along with Washington, D.C., sued over the mass firings.

Representatives for the White House did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, whose office led the lawsuit, said the Trump administration’s claim that the workers were fired for poor performance was false.

“This was a coordinated effort to eliminate the federal workforce — even if it meant breaking the law,” Brown said in a statement.

Bredar on March 13 had already ruled that the firings were likely illegal and ordered 18 agencies to reinstate workers who had been fired pending further litigation. Tuesday’s decision will be in place pending the outcome of the lawsuit, which could take months or longer to resolve.

China holds military exercises around Taiwan in fresh warning

TAIPEI, Taiwan (NYT) — China launched military exercises pressing in on Taiwan on Tuesday, sending warships and fighter planes in what Beijing said was a warning to the island-democracy’s president, Lai Ching-te, after he called China a “foreign hostile force.”

Chinese land, navy, air and missile forces would “approach close” to Taiwan and practice “seizure of overall control, strikes on sea and land targets, and the blockade and control of key areas and lanes” at sea, Senior Col. Shi Yi, a spokesperson for the People’s Liberation Army regional command that oversees Taiwan, said in a statement issued on Chinese state-run media.

Sometimes, China’s military does not spell out why it holds drills. This time, officials and state media reports were clear: “This is firm punishment for the Lai Ching-te administration’s rampant ‘pro-independence’ provocations,” Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the Chinese government’s office on Taiwanese affairs, said in a statement.

Zhu singled out a speech by Lai on March 13 in which he described China as a “foreign hostile force” and laid out 17 measures that Lai said would combat deepening Chinese subversion and spying in Taiwan. Those included restoring military tribunals for cases against military personnel who spy, and strengthening oversight of cultural, political and religious exchanges with China. Beijing says that Taiwan is its territory, and that it will eventually absorb the island, by force if Chinese leaders deem that necessary.

None of the Chinese ships or planes crossed a boundary of 24 nautical miles around Taiwan, ministry officials told reporters. The Chinese Coast Guard also announced that it had sent ships on “law enforcement” patrol around two groups of islands controlled by Taiwan.