The Supreme Court appeared poised to allow President Trump to fire members of the Federal Trade Commission during oral arguments Monday.

Why it matters: A win for the president in Trump vs. Slaughter would be a major blow to a 90-year-old precedent that has kept the job of independent agency commissioners safe from being fired for political reasons.

Driving the news: Trump teed up the case when he fired Rebecca Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya, Democratic FTC commissioners, earlier this year. • The case focuses on the precedent of Humphrey's Executor, a 1935 ruling which holds that independent agency commissioners cannot be fired without specific cause.

What they're saying: The conservative majority on the court seemed hesitant to deny presidents the power to fire agency commissioners. •

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