A federal judge in California will haul the Trump administration into court for an emergency hearing on Friday afternoon amid concerns that several thousand federal workers may be laid off in the coming days — in direct violation of a temporary restraining order.

The nature of the hearing reflects a series of quick moves and countermoves by the parties in the already-dramatic litigation .

On Wednesday, in a bench ruling , U.S. District Judge Susan Illston , a Bill Clinton appointee, blocked the government from issuing so-called reductions in force (RIFs) aimed at cutting the number of federal employees. Later, the court issued a seven-page order outlining the terms of the relief and elaborating on the judge's rationale for barring the mass layoffs.

"If what plaintiffs allege is true, th

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