A federal judge in Washington has said a lawsuit against Elon Musk can go forward. The case accuses Musk of using executive power in an unconstitutional way while he was in charge of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) last year.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan refused the Trump administration’s request to completely throw out the case.
The lawsuit was filed by nonprofit groups. They say their members were hurt because of federal funding cuts and large-scale layoffs of government workers that they claim Musk directed with an unapproved and excessive level of control.
Chutkan rejected some parts of the lawsuit as too vague, but she let the main argument stay: that Musk was acting like a cabinet official without being officially appointed, which violates the Constitution’s Appointments Clause.
The nonprofits say Musk, as the public face of DOGE, made big decisions about ending federal grants, contracts, and jobs.
The judge pointed out that the complaint clearly says that the head of DOGE himself made decisions and gave orders on important matters such as ending federal grants, contracts, and workers.
Musk started the DOGE project when Trump came back to the White House and was the most visible leader, even though the administration said he wasn’t the official administrator.
He left the position last spring.
“As we continue to learn, DOGE did massive damage to the federal government and its operations, with little to show for it, and without any lawful authority,” said lawyer Dan Lenz.
Judge Chutkan confirmed what’s already clear – that DOGE and its team of young people had too much power, fired tens of thousands of hardworking and dedicated staff, ended grants, and shut down the entire USAID.
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