Judge Tanya Chutkan from the DC District Court rejected a move by 13 Democrat-led states. This move aimed to block Elon Musk and his team from accessing data or code at seven federal agencies. Chutkan outlined in a ten-page ruling that the states failed to prove they would suffer immediate, irreparable harm without a temporary restraining order, leading to a denial of their request.
This situation is one of two legal battles that could hinder President Trump’s initiatives for a period. The second case, brought to the Supreme Court on Tuesday, involves Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger seeking reinstatement after being dismissed by President Trump. Dellinger’s plea challenges the core of executive authority.
The main argument presented to Judge Chutkan is that Musk’s involvement in government affairs violates the US Constitution. The claim is that the Senate did not confirm Musk as a “principal officer” as mandated by the Constitution. Furthermore, Congress lacks oversight of DOGE, which operates within the Executive Office of the President. This reasoning may seem odd to some, as the President typically has the authority to establish task forces for specific missions and appoint individuals of his choosing. However, such decisions are subject to judicial interpretation in the DC Circuit.
Plaintiffs legitimately call into question what appears to be the unchecked authority of an unelected individual and an entity that was not created by Congress and over which it has no oversight. In these circumstances, it must be indisputable that this court acts within the bounds of its authority. Accordingly, it cannot issue a TRO, especially one as wide-ranging as Plaintiffs request, without clear evidence of imminent, irreparable harm to these Plaintiffs. The current record does not meet that standard.
New Mexico vs Musk-final Order by streiff on Scribd
This case was a close-run thing. When the case was first filed, Chutkan seemed inclined to grant a temporary restraining order that would have barred even President and cabinet secretaries from accessing data in agencies they control; see . Yesterday, she seemed to retreat a bit from that stance, expressing doubts about what the coalition of leftist-controlled states was asking; see . Today, she stepped back from the ledge.
This is the second loss to the anti-Trump resistance today. Earlier, another federal judge (), also an Obama judge, tossed a request for a TRO that would have prevented DOGE from auditing the Department of Education’s student loan program.
