Trump signs order to expand White House control of independent agencies

President Trump signed an executive order Tuesday aiming to expand the White House’s authority over various independent regulatory agencies, a move likely to prompt legal challenges.

Trump issued an order titled “Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies” that would require independent agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission to submit proposed regulations to the White House for review.

The order also calls for the head of the Office of Management and Budget, currently Russell Vought, to review the agencies’ spending to ensure it aligns with the president’s priorities.

“These regulatory agencies currently exercise substantial executive authority without sufficient accountability to the President, and through him, to the American people,” the order states. “Moreover, these regulatory agencies have been permitted to promulgate significant regulations without review by the President.”

The executive action is expected to trigger a legal battle, as Congress established that the agencies affected by the order would operate with some independence from the White House.

The order is the latest in a series of controversial moves by Trump to try to consolidate power within the executive branch and root out what his advisers see as unelected bureaucrats who could hinder his agenda.

The president has in his first few weeks in office fired several inspectors general who provided oversight at various government agencies, and ousted agency heads appointed by the previous administration.

The Trump Justice Department on Sunday also asked the Supreme Court to greenlight the president’s firing of the head of a federal whistleblower protection office, a lawsuit that could give an indication of how much Trump will be allowed to expand executive authority.