Good evening. I'm Amna Nawaz. Jeff Bennett is on assignment.

On the news hour tonight, the Supreme Court hears arguments on a major test of the President's power over independent agencies.

European leaders rally around Ukraine after the United States appears to shift its national security strategy to favor Russia.

And researchers find some of the highest rates of mental decline in a population that's long been one of the most difficult to study, Native Americans.

Native Americans are very hesitant about volunteering for these types of things, and that

comes historically from studies that were involuntarily done on Native American people. Welcome to the News Hour.

The Supreme Court heard arguments today in a legal case that could vastly expand presidential powers.

At stake are 90 years of precedent that have kept presidents from being able to remove members of

independent government agencies.

The case looks at whether President Trump acted legally in firing Rebecca Slaughter, a Democratic

member of the bipartisan Federal Trade Commission, saying her service was inconsistent

with Trump administration priorities.

Slaughter sued, arguing that commissioners

can only be fired for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance. Today, Trump administration

lawyers argued that gives agencies too much power. It continues to tempt Congress to erect,

at the heart of our government, a headless fourth branch insulated from political

accountability and democratic control.

But liberal justices warned about the impact this could have on the balance of power.

You're asking us to destroy the structure of government and to take away from Congress its ability to protect its idea

that a the government is better structured with some agencies that are independent.

Joining me now to discuss today's arguments is the NewsHour's Supreme Court analyst Amy Howe.

She's co-founder of SCOTUS blog. Good to see you, Amy.

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