The former head of a federal watchdog agency sued the Trump administration last month, arguing that he was wrongly forced out of his job.

However, the Biden-appointed ex-official is apparently resigned to his fate as he dropped his lawsuit this week. 

Office of Special Counsel tasked with rooting out malfeasance in executive branch

According to the New York Post, Hampton Dellinger's decision came on Thursday shortly after the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against him.

Dellinger had beaded the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), an independent agency responsible for finding and prosecuting misconduct by the executive branch of government.

The OSC's website states that its "primary mission is to safeguard the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices (PPPs), especially reprisal for whistleblowing."

It is also in charge of enforcing the Hatch Act, a piece of legislation which was passed in 1939 and places limitations on the political conduct of federal employees.

Dellinger gives up on potential Supreme Court appeal, says fight is "now over"

Dellinger alleged that his termination had been unlawful since special counsels can only be removed "for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance of office."

However, Dellinger acknowledged in a public statement that his legal battle was "now over" given the difficulties associated with appealing last week's ruling.

Supreme Court pauses Trump administration’s effort to fire head of whistleblower protection agency https://t.co/cbYLhp1i33

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"I’m stopping the fight because, yesterday, circuit court judges reviewing the trial court decision in my favor granted the government’s request that I be removed from office while the case continues," the Post quoted him as saying.

"This new ruling means that OSC will be run by someone totally beholden to the President for the months that would pass before I could get a final decision from the U.S. Supreme Court," he asserted.

Former official says appellate judges "erred badly" in their decision

"I think the circuit judges erred badly because their willingness to sign off on my ouster – even if presented as possibly temporary – immediately erases the independence Congress provided for my position," Dellinger complained.

"My fight to stay on the job was not for me, but rather for the ideal that OSC should be as Congress intended," he declared.

Dellinger went on to insist that the OSC was meant to be "an independent watchdog and a safe, trustworthy place for whistleblowers to report wrongdoing and be protected from retaliation."