"Robert Primus on the STB and Alvin Brown on the NTSB were the only Black board members overseeing their officially independent agencies when they were fired this year, in August and in May. Both had already filed lawsuits challenging their dismissals, saying the White House didn't have good cause, as the law requires. Democracy Forward filed the new discrimination claims on behalf both men."
"The White House didn't immediately respond to the new legal filing, but has said Trump was well within his legal rights to fire Primus and Brown. The administration hasn't filed a formal response to Primus' lawsuit yet, but the Trump administration asked a judge to dismiss Brown's lawsuit, arguing that the statutory protection saying board members can only be fired for cause is unconstitutional, and that the president should be able to pick his team at every executive agency."
"When Brown was fired, experts said they couldn't remember anyone ever being fired from the NTSB, which is tasked with investigating disasters across all modes of transportation to determine what caused them and make recommendations to prevent similar tragedies from ever happening again. The NTSB is currently investigating nearly 1,250 cases including the collision of a passenger jet and Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., that killed 67 people in January."
Two Black federal board members, Robert Primus of the Surface Transportation Board and Alvin Brown of the National Transportation Safety Board, were fired by President Donald Trump in August and May. Both men were the only Black members on their agencies' boards and have filed lawsuits challenging the dismissals as lacking the legally required cause. Democracy Forward added discrimination claims on their behalf, alleging a broader pattern of removing Black commissioners across the federal government. The White House contends the president had legal authority to remove them; the administration has sought dismissal of Brown's suit and has not responded formally to Primus' case.
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