One Deep State bureaucrat just learned the hard way that Donald Trump means business

The swamp creatures are panicking as President Trump drains Washington, D.C.

One defiant federal employee thought she could defy the Commander-in-Chief.

But one Deep State bureaucrat just learned the hard way that Donald Trump means business.

Federal judge delivers crushing blow to fired bureaucrat’s lawsuit

Shira Perlmutter believed she was untouchable when President Trump terminated her position as head of the U.S. Copyright Office earlier this month.

The career government employee rushed to federal court, demanding judicial protection from her firing because she claimed the President lacked authority to remove her.

But U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly delivered a reality check on Wednesday that left Perlmutter’s legal team scrambling.

Kelly rejected her emergency request for a temporary restraining order that would have allowed her to keep drawing taxpayer-funded paychecks while fighting her termination in court.

The judge ruled that Perlmutter failed to meet the demanding legal standard required for such emergency relief.

According to Reuters, Kelly stated that "recent rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court and D.C. Circuit ‘gave a side-eye’ to the idea that the harm of her firing would justify a restraining order against the administration."

While Kelly didn’t rule on whether Trump had the legal authority to fire Perlmutter, his decision means she can’t use the courts to freeze personnel decisions while the case proceeds.

Trump administration fires back at entitled bureaucrat’s claims

Perlmutter had served as Register of Copyrights since October 2020, overseeing copyright registrations and policy recommendations from within the Library of Congress.

The timing of her termination raised eyebrows across Washington.

Trump fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden on May 8, then terminated Perlmutter just two days later – immediately after her office released a report questioning whether AI companies could freely use copyrighted materials to train their systems.

The Justice Department didn’t mince words in defending Trump’s actions against Perlmutter’s lawsuit.

Government lawyers argued that "the Library of Congress is ‘not an autonomous organization free from political supervision.’"

They systematically dismantled Perlmutter’s central argument that she operated in some special category beyond presidential oversight.

The administration’s legal filing reminded everyone of basic constitutional principles that this career bureaucrat apparently forgot during her decades in government.

Trump replaced Hayden with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as acting Librarian of Congress, who then appointed Paul Perkins to take over Perlmutter’s role.

Career bureaucrat discovers she’s not immune from accountability

Perlmutter’s lawsuit revealed the entitled mindset that has infected the federal bureaucracy for decades.

She essentially argued that certain government employees should be immune from the consequences of elections and changes in leadership.

Her legal team claimed that only the Librarian of Congress could hire or fire the Register of Copyrights, creating a bizarre chain of protection that would insulate bureaucrats from presidential authority.

But the Justice Department pointed out the obvious flaw in this reasoning.

If the President can remove the Librarian of Congress, then the President ultimately controls who serves in positions under that office.

The administration’s court filing noted that there’s no constitutional basis for creating "an indeterminate-and-multiplying number of autonomous federal organizations" that operate beyond executive oversight.

White House stands firm on presidential prerogatives

Following Judge Kelly’s ruling, the White House made clear that President Trump wouldn’t back down from exercising his constitutional authority over the executive branch.

"All organizations are more effective when leaders are rowing in the same direction," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement to Roll Call.

"President Trump reserves the right to remove employees within his own Executive Branch who exert his executive authority," she added.

This case represents everything that’s wrong with the federal bureaucracy that President Trump promised to reform during his campaign.

Too many career government employees have grown comfortable believing they’re above accountability and immune from the consequences of democratic elections.

They’ve created an insular culture where they think they can ignore new leadership and continue operating according to their own preferences rather than the policies voters chose.

Deep State resistance meets constitutional reality

Perlmutter’s firing came at a particularly interesting time for the Copyright Office.

Her office had just released a comprehensive report raising concerns about AI companies using copyrighted works to train their systems without permission.

Some Democrats, including Representative Joe Morelle, suggested the timing wasn’t coincidental and accused Trump of retaliating against Perlmutter for not "rubber-stamp Elon Musk’s efforts to mine troves of copyrighted works to train AI models."

Whether that’s true or not, it misses the larger point about presidential authority over federal agencies.

The President has the constitutional responsibility to ensure that executive branch officials implement his administration’s policies, not pursue their own agendas.

Career bureaucrats who want to set policy should run for office themselves rather than trying to create islands of autonomous power within the federal government.

Judge Kelly’s ruling sends a clear message to other Deep State operatives who might be considering similar legal challenges to President Trump’s personnel decisions.

The courts won’t protect bureaucrats who try to defy legitimate presidential authority through frivolous lawsuits.

Trump delivers on promise to drain the swamp

This case perfectly illustrates why President Trump’s promise to drain the swamp resonated with so many American voters.

For too long, the federal bureaucracy has operated like a permanent government that believes it knows better than the people’s elected representatives.

Career employees like Perlmutter have grown accustomed to outlasting multiple administrations and continuing their preferred policies regardless of election outcomes.

But President Trump campaigned on bringing accountability to the federal government, and cases like this prove he’s serious about that commitment.

The American people elected Donald Trump to clean house in Washington, and that’s exactly what he’s doing – even when entitled bureaucrats try to hide behind meritless lawsuits.

While Perlmutter’s emergency request failed, her underlying lawsuit continues, giving her another chance to test whether the courts will protect bureaucratic resistance to presidential authority.

But Judge Kelly’s initial ruling suggests that federal judges understand the constitutional principles at stake and won’t let career government employees use the courts to circumvent democratic accountability.

24/7 Politics will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.