A federal judge has ruled that former President Donald Trump broke the law when he booted two Democratic members off the board of the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), the independent agency overseeing the country’s \$2.3 trillion credit union system.
In a pointed decision handed down in Washington, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali ordered the immediate reinstatement of Todd Harper and Tanya Otsuka, who were removed by the Trump administration in April without explanation. The judge found their dismissal violated congressional rules designed to shield financial regulators from political whiplash.
The firings left Republican Chairman Kyle Hauptman as the lone member steering the agency—a move critics said compromised the board’s balance and independence.
Harper, originally appointed by Trump himself in 2019 and later elevated to chairman by President Biden, wasn’t due to finish his term until 2027. Otsuka, confirmed by the Senate in 2023, was slated to serve until 2029. Neither had reached the end of their tenure when they were shown the door—something that had never happened in the NCUA’s nearly 50-year history.
Their legal team argued that the NCUA’s structure, like other financial regulatory bodies, is supposed to be protected from abrupt political overhauls. The judge agreed.
“The ruling affirms that financial oversight isn’t meant to swing with every change in the Oval Office,” their attorney said in a statement. “Congress built in these protections for a reason.”
The Trump administration, in its defense, claimed the president holds sweeping authority to remove board members at will—a position the Justice Department has taken in similar cases involving independent federal agencies.
And this isn’t the only legal battlefield. Just this week, a federal appeals court temporarily halted the return of another dismissed Democratic official—Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter—while her case moves forward. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court recently greenlit Trump’s decision to block two labor board members pending resolution of their challenges.
The White House and Department of Justice declined to comment on the NCUA ruling.
For now, the message from the bench is clear: independence for regulators isn’t just a courtesy—it’s the law.
