14 US states sue Elon Musk, head of DOGE: Are his powers unconstitutional?
Technology billionaire Elon Musk has been sued by 14 states on the grounds that he holds 'unconstitutional' powers as the director of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), to which he was appointed by Trump. In their court filing, the states alleged that Musk possesses 'unchecked authority.'
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14 states, claiming that Elon Musk's role as director of DOGE is unconstitutional, have filed a lawsuit against Musk and US President Donald Trump. The lawsuit, which was prompted by DOGE's access to data within government agencies, states that the department and Musk have been granted 'near-unlimited' powers.
The states of New Mexico, Arizona, Michigan, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington announced that they have filed a lawsuit against Trump, Musk, and DOGE. The 14-state court filing argues that Musk's position as the head of DOGE is unconstitutional.
Describing the authority granted to the US billionaire as 'unlimited and unchecked power,' the court filing included the following statements:
''Unaware of the risk this situation poses to the nation, President Trump has granted Mr. Musk nearly unchecked authority without proper, legal authorization from Congress and without reasonable oversight of his activities.''
According to a report by The Hill, the filing notes that Musk was not nominated for his position nor confirmed by the Senate, emphasizing that the US billionaire's leadership of DOGE is unconstitutional.
Protests against Musk and DOGE in Washington have been ongoing since January 28
ELON MUSK RESPONDS TO THE LAWSUIT
The court filing, which argues that Musk has 'transformed the authority initially granted, limited to the management of government websites, into a representation of chaos without restrictions and in violation of the separation of powers,' demands an end to the billionaire businessman's authority. Meanwhile, Musk responded to recent lawsuits filed against Trump's executive orders in a statement on his X social media account.
Musk stated the following:
'If any judge anywhere can stop every presidential action everywhere, then we are not living in a democracy.'
DOGE, under Musk's leadership, was created by Donald Trump, who took office as US President on January 20, with the goal of 'eliminating federal waste.' The activities carried out by the agency since January 20 have led to protests against DOGE and Musk in Washington.