The Senate on Wednesday voted along party lines to confirm John DeLeeuw to the National Transportation Safety Board, filling an opening that President Trump created when he fired the board’s vice chair, who is suing to get his job back.
The debate over the selection of Mr. DeLeeuw, a longtime aviator and executive for American Airlines, did not center on his qualifications. The 50-to-45 vote, in which all Republicans voted to confirm, served as more of a referendum on whether Mr. Trump has power to fire Senate-confirmed federal officials — a question being considered by the Supreme Court.
“Why are we rushing to confirm Mr. DeLeeuw to a seat that isn’t even really vacant under current law?” Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington, the top Democrat on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said on the Senate floor before the vote.
“Why would we needlessly create confusion, especially when the Supreme Court is expected to rule on this issue very soon?” she added.
Last December, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case brought by Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, a Democratic member of the Federal Trade Commission, challenging Mr. Trump’s decision to oust her without cause last March. The outcome of the case is likely to be pivotal for a wider circle of federal board members, commissioners and inspectors general Mr. Trump has fired since returning to the Oval Office.
Among those who could be affected is Alvin Brown, the former N.T.S.B. vice chair. Last May, Mr. Trump fired Mr. Brown, who was unanimously confirmed by the Senate in 2024. Mr. Brown challenged the decision in a lawsuit against Mr. Trump, the N.T.S.B. and its chair, Jennifer Homendy. The case is still pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Lawyers for Mr. Brown and representatives for the N.T.S.B. declined to comment on Mr. DeLeeuw’s confirmation. Ms. Homendy has spoken highly of Mr. DeLeeuw, saying on social media last September that he would be “an excellent addition to the Board.”
The Supreme Court is expected to rule in the coming months in Ms. Slaughter’s case. Should they side with the ousted commissioner, it could create a crisis for the N.T.S.B., as Mr. Brown and Mr. DeLeeuw would have competing claims to the same board seat.
But that outcome seems unlikely. By letting the removal of Ms. Slaughter and others stand while litigation continues, a majority of the justices signaled that they viewed restrictions preventing the removal of Senate-confirmed officials to be unconstitutional.
Karoun Demirjian is a breaking news reporter for The Times.
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