Judge Blocks Loyalty Questions Across 70,000 Federal Jobs

A federal judge in Boston has halted the Trump administration’s requirement that applicants for nonpartisan civil service jobs write essays explaining how they would advance the president’s policies and executive orders. Judge George O’Toole sided with three federal employee unions, finding that they were likely to show the practice violated federal rules protecting political neutrality and applicants’ First Amendment rights. The unions said the question appeared in more than 70,000 job postings and could discourage applicants or make political views a factor in merit-based hiring, while the administration maintained that the essay was voluntary and was intended to assess candidates’ ability to support policy priorities. The injunction creates uncertainty for federal hiring and could slow agency operations while the broader legal challenge proceeds.