In June of 2026, the Supreme Court handed down a ruling to the wailing, gnashing of teeth and rending of garments of Democrats. They were exercised because the Court’s decision dramatically limited their ability to sabotage the agendas of Republican presidents, particularly Donald Trump’s. The issue was whether a POTUS had the power to actually run so-called “independent” agencies under the umbrella of the Executive branch.
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Over the course of the twentieth century, “independent” federal agencies accumulated vast executive power, including the power to investigate, adjudicate, and impose severe financial penalties for regulatory violations. Yet courts still treated these agencies as if they were mere “judicial or legislative aids” from a bygone era. On that basis, officials within these agencies were wrongly insulated from presidential removal for over 90 years.
On Monday, that ended. The Supreme Court held in that the Federal Trade Commission’s for-cause removal provision is contrary to the separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution. As the Court explained, the Constitution creates a hierarchy below the elected president within the executive branch. And both constitutional structure and history show that to remain accountable to the President, those officers directly below the President must be removable by him.
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Thus, presidents can fire the previously untouchable employees of those agencies. It appears several reporters and an editor of Stars and Stripes, whose more-or-less direct boss is Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, somehow missed that ruling. They were recently fired and have filed a suit, essentially arguing that because they’re reporters, they are independent of their boss, and of course, the Trump Administration:
Three staffers at Stars and Stripes, including the military publication’s publisher and editor in chief, sued the Defense Department, saying their recent firings by the Pentagon were illegal and violated their free-speech protections under the First Amendment.
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In the lawsuit, filed Thursday in federal district court in Washington, publisher Max Lederer, editor in chief Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Korte claimed that their firings last week for “insubordination” were retaliatory in nature and violated federal administrative law.
Ignoring for the moment Trump v. Slaughter, the Trump Administration had, months ago, charged the entire DOD with reordering its focus, most specifically toward war fighting rather than drag queens and pronouns. This included the Pentagon, which funds Stars and Stripes and pays the salaries of the three fired former journalistic revolutionaries.
The lawsuit escalates a fight over the editorial independence of a military newspaper partially funded through congressional appropriations.
Erik Slavin, former editor-in-chief of the paper, told Axios he was fired for “insubordination” over a controversial July 5 interview with CBS News. He was removed alongside publisher Max Lederer and Middle East reporter Lara Korte.
In his interview, Slavin said hypothetical censorship at Stars and Stripes would be a “red line” for him.
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Context: Those comments came a month after two members of the paper’s advisory board sued the Pentagon on First Amendment grounds over new restrictions on the outlet.
A few weeks later, the paper’s former ombudsman filed her own suit, arguing she was fired in retaliation for criticizing the Pentagon’s new policies.
“Our goal is to protect the rights of service members and their families to a free and independent press. Stars and Stripes has served them for generations, and that independence is essential to keeping military communities fully and accurately informed,” the plaintiffs said in a statement.
“This lawsuit is about safeguarding that mission and ensuring our civilian and military journalists can do their jobs without retaliation.”
This is partially about recent Stars and Stripes reporting on supposedly harsh conditions on the aircraft carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln. Some sailors, and their parents, have been complaining that they didn’t sign up to be stuck on a ship in the middle of the ocean. Of course, the Democrat propaganda media was delighted to be able to slam President Trump and our military. It’s an issue I recently addressed in Are our sailors really starving? The conclusion? No, they’re not.
Sailors sign up to “sail” on “ships,” which, amazingly enough, move about on the world’s oceans. And they, like the reporters at Stars and Stripes, are under the direct authority of the military chain of command. When the officers appointed over them give an order, refusing to carry out that order is insubordination. The same applies to reporters hired and paid by the military. Orders were given; the reporters refused to carry them out, which was insubordination. Firing followed.
Stars and Stripes is not a privately owned, independent media outlet. Considering Trump v. Slaughter, it appears obvious that the three revolutionaries will inevitably discover what the rest of us have always known: ignore your boss at your own risk. It couldn’t happen to more feckless revolutionaries.
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Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, lifelong athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer, and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.
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