Judge halts Trump’s downsizing of federal agencies

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters. Picture: Alex Brandon/AP

The Republican administration must halt much of its dramatic downsizing of the federal workforce, a California judge has ordered.

Judge Susan Illston in San Francisco issued the emergency order in a lawsuit filed by unions and cities last week, one of multiple legal challenges to President Donald Trump’s efforts to shrink the size of a federal government he calls bloated and expensive.