A federal appeals court on Friday said President Trump was likely on solid legal ground when he fired the board at the U.S. Institute of Peace and sent in his own people to start cutting.

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia blocked a lower court ruling that found Mr. Trump went beyond his powers.

That lower judge, Beryl Howell, a frequent Trump opponent, said USIP fell outside of core executive branch powers and so the president couldn’t boot the board.

But the three-judge panel said USIP is in the middle of foreign policy decisions, which belong to the president under the Constitution. Putting it beyond his reach violates that.

“The president’s inability to control the Institute’s exercise of these ‘significant executive power[s]’ undermines his ability to set and pursue his foreign policy objectives,” the federal panel said in an unsigned order.

The judges said the lower court injunction against Mr. Trump’s firings must be put on hold.

“The president faces irreparable harm from not being able to fully exercise his executive powers. That harm outweighs any harm the removed board members may face,” ruled the panel, made up of three Trump appointees.

USIP was a particular target for former Trump adviser Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency.

Mr. Trump moved in February to slash USIP’s activities to the bare minimum, and agency leaders resisted, leading to a tense stand-off at the agency’s headquarters and the threat of criminal charges.

Mr. Trump eventually booted the board and appointed loyalists who then shut down the headquarters and moved to lay off hundreds of employees.

Judge Howell, an Obama appointee to the court in Washington, called that a “gross usurpation of power” and said Mr. Trump “traumatized” USIP’s board and employees.

She ruled the firings were “null, void and without legal effect.”

She noted that USIP was created by Congress in legislation signed into law by President Ronald Reagan.

At that time, Reagan asserted presidential control over the agency in a signing statement.

But Judge Howell said that statement was little more than sour grapes, saying it reflected only Reagan’s inability to convince Congress of his position.

• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.