Democratic US surface transport board member that chairman Donald Trump Considering the largest rail merger, he was thrown in front of the group, sometime a case that challenges its dismissal as illegal.
Robert Primus, who served in the board since 2001, said white House Never gave him a reason for his August 28 firing on August that endangers the freedom of the five -member STB. The board ended before he got a chance to review the Norfolk Southern $ 85 billion acquisition to create the first true transcontinental railroad.
“Our country’s supply chain demands that the board be independent and transparent. Congress 138 years ago made it mandatory, “Primus said.”failure To do this will negatively affect the network: the railroad, shipper, and rail labor alike, disrupt the supply chain and eventually inject instability in our country’s economy. It is dangerous, and is wrong, and it cannot be allowed to happen. ,
The White House did not immediately respond to the trial filed on Tuesday, but the press office is running in the middle of the ongoing government shutdown with a few employees. At the time of firing, the only reason for publicly introduced was a statement saying “Robert Primus did not align with the President’s first agenda.”
But Primus defenders led by Sky Periman, who are the President and CEO of Democracy Forward, said that the action ignores the way the establishment of STB. The Congress established that the only reasons for the removal of someone from STB were in cases of disability, neglect of duty, or maliciousness in the office.
Periman said, “President Trump continues to target members of independent boards without any reason, without violation of the law. While creating a surface transport board, the Congress clarified that the agency should be independent and above politics.”
Trump has removed a string of board members in various agencies which are scheduled to be independent including Federal Reserve, National Transportation Safety Board, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Primus said that he always tries to be fair and political on the board in his time, which was going to continue by the end of 2027. His firing broke the tie 2–2 between the Republican and the Democrats on the board and cleared the way to appoint Trump two more members.
Each Railway Workers Union, Non -Gold Rail Passengers Association and Congress Democratic members quickly condemned the shootout when this happened. Democratic Sen Tammy Baldwin said that at that time the primus was fired that it seemed that Trump was trying to pile up the board, so the union would rub the Pacific merger.
Since then, Trump has said that he felt good after meeting with the Union Pacific CEO at the Oval Office last month.
Primus was the only board member opposing the acquisition of Canadian Pacific’s Canus City Southern Railroad when he was approved two years ago as he was worried that it would hurt competition, which is a concern for him, although he has not taken any position on the up-NS deal. He was nominated by former President who was named Chairman of the Board by former President Joe Biden and led the board to Trump, after his election, Republican Board member Patrick Fuchs was conveyed to the chairman.