Trump fires election commission chairwoman, but she won't leave
What's the story
United States President Donald Trump has tried to fire Ellen L Weintraub, the Chairwoman of the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
Weintraub, a Democratic commissioner since 2002, shared a letter signed by Trump announcing her "hereby removed" from the commission "effective immediately."
She questioned the legality of the move, saying while there is a "perfectly legal way for him to replace me," "just flat-out firing me...is not it."
Tenure details
Weintraub's tenure and the FEC's structure
"I've been lucky to serve the American people and stir up some good trouble along the way. That's not changing anytime soon," she asserted.
The FEC is a bipartisan agency with six commissioners, evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans.
Her term as commissioner expired in 2007, but Weintraub has remained on the board due to FEC rules that allow a commissioner to stay on until their replacement is confirmed by the US Senate.
Strategy and complaints
Weintraub's strategy and Trump's complaints
Weintraub told The New York Times in an interview published on Thursday that she was "not really surprised" by Trump's actions.
In the past, Weintraub has criticized Trump's claims of widespread voting fraud in federal elections.
"I think it is damaging to our democracy to spread information like that if there is no proof," she told CNN in a 2019 interview.
Then in 2020, Weintraub criticized Trump again after he claimed that expanding mail-voting would result in rampant voter fraud.
Criticism voiced
Trump signs 2 more executive orders
Since Trump took office last month, federal institutions have undergone enormous, widespread overhauls.
The ongoing adjustments have included hiring freezes in several departments, buyouts for employees, and, in certain cases, terminations of employment, such as Weintraub's.
His latest actions include ordering imposing financial and visa sanctions on individuals and their families who assist in International Criminal Court (ICC) investigations of US citizens or allies.
The second is the creation of a White House faith office to end "anti-Christian bias."