US judge allows states’ lawsuit against Doge to proceed
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Doge has swept through federal agencies, slashing thousands of jobs and dismantling various programmes, since Mr Trump returned to office in January.
PHOTO: AFP
A US judge on May 27 allowed a group of 14 states to move ahead with a lawsuit challenging Mr Elon Musk’s efforts to slash federal spending as the head of US President Donald Trump’s new government efficiency agency, rejecting the Trump administration’s effort to dismiss the case.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, however, dismissed the states’ claims against Mr Trump himself, saying her court would not try to interfere with “the performance of his official duties” as president.
The states’ lawsuit could proceed against Mr Musk and Doge because it made a plausible claim that Mr Musk’s cost-cutting activities were “unauthorised by any law”, according to Judge Chutkan’s ruling in a Washington federal court.
The attorneys-general of New Mexico, Oregon and 12 other states filed their lawsuit in February, alleging that Mr Trump has given Mr Musk “unchecked legal authority” without authorisation from the US Congress. The lawsuit seeks to halt Doge’s efforts to slash federal spending and shut down US agencies disfavoured by Mr Trump.
“The court is right: The Constitution says Musk can’t run the federal government unless the Senate confirms him,” Oregon Attorney-General Dan Rayfield said on May 27.
The White House and attorneys-general for several other states that filed the lawsuit did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Mr Musk did not immediately respond to an e-mail message seeking comment.
The states argued that Mr Musk wields the kind of power that can be exercised only by an officer of the government who has been nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and that Doge itself has not been authorised by Congress.
Doge has swept through federal agencies, slashing thousands of jobs and dismantling various programmes, since Mr Trump returned to office in January and put Mr Musk in charge of rooting out what they say is wasteful spending as part of the President’s dramatic overhaul of government.
Around 20 lawsuits have been filed in various federal courts challenging Mr Musk’s authority, which have led to mixed results. REUTERS
