Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday permitted President Trump to fire Democratic appointees serving at two federal independent agencies as the Supreme Court mulls how to handle the administration’s new appeal. 

Roberts’ administrative stay is not necessarily an indication of how the high court will rule, but it temporarily lifts lower court decisions reinstating the two officials. 

It also adds to the whiplash for National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) member Gwynne Wilcox and Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) member Cathy Harris as their legal challenges weave through the courts. 

The duo has been fired, reinstated, removed again, reinstated again, and now removed yet another time with Roberts’ latest ruling. 

Trump purported to fire Wilcox and Harris despite federal laws that protect them from termination without cause. The terminations tee up a key test of presidential power and are part of the new administration’s broader wave of independent agency leader firings.

The administration is urging the Supreme Court to leapfrog a lower court to take up the cases now to settle this term whether removal protections for NLRB and MSPB members are unconstitutional. 

Roberts ordered attorneys for Wilcox and Harris to respond to the government’s request by Tuesday afternoon.