14 states sue Musk and Trump, calling billionaire’s role unconstitutional

[mystery-ak]

 14 states sue Musk and Trump, calling billionaire’s role unconstitutional
by Julia Shapero - 02/13/25 5:37 PM ET

Fourteen states sued Elon Musk, his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and President Trump on Thursday, arguing that the tech billionaire’s sweeping efforts to cut government spending are unconstitutional.

The coalition of states, led by New Mexico, alleges that Musk’s expansive role as the head of DOGE violates the Appointments Clause of the Constitution given that he has not been confirmed by the Senate.

“Mr. Musk’s seemingly limitless and unchecked power to strip the government of its workforce and eliminate entire departments with the stroke of a pen or click of a mouse would have been shocking to those who won this country’s independence,” they wrote.

“There is no office of the United States, other than the President, with the full power of the Executive Branch, and the sweeping authority now vested in a single unelected and unconfirmed individual is antithetical to the nation’s entire constitutional structure,” they continued. 

The states — Arizona, Michigan, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington in addition to New Mexico — are asking the court to bar Musk and his DOGE team from taking a wide range of actions.

more
https://thehill.com/policy/technology/5144185-states-elon-musk-doge-lawsuit/

[mountaineer]

Do they have standing for such legal action?

[Fishrrman]

"Do they have standing for such legal action?"

Standing?
Standing?
We don't need no stinkin' standing...!


All they need is a federal judge who will enjoin DOGE from operating.
And they'll find one (or more) pretty quickly...!

[mountaineer]

Julie Kelly 🇺🇸
@julie_kelly2
The ironies just keep coming.

Several states filed a lawsuit yesterday asking for a temporary restraining order against Elon Musk and DOGE.

Their argument? That Musk's position violates the Appointments Clause--the same argument Trump's lawyers made against the appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith. (It resulted in the dismissal of the classified documents case in Florida.)

This lawsuit has been assigned to Judge Tanya Chutkan, who presided over Smith's J6 indictment against the president.

She has scheduled an emergency hearing at 4pm today to hear the matter without giving the DOJ any time to respond in writing.

Important to remember Chutkan not only imposed a gag order on the president but was harshly rebuked by the Supreme Court over her hasty and unconstitutional immunity order. She allowed Jack Smith to pull every trick in the book until the last moment. She is undoubtedly chomping at the bit to get another swing at the president.

Lawsuit:

"There is no greater threat to democracy than the accumulation of state power in the hands of a single, unelected individual. Although our constitutional system was designed to prevent the abuses of an 18th century monarch, the instruments of unchecked power are no less dangerous in the hands of a 21st century tech baron.

In recent weeks, Defendant Elon Musk, with President Donald J. Trump’s approval, has roamed through the federal government unraveling agencies, accessing sensitive data, and causing mass chaos and confusion for state and local governments, federal employees, and the American people.

Oblivious to the threat this poses to the nation, President Trump has delegated virtually unchecked authority to Mr. Musk without proper legal authorization from Congress and without meaningful supervision of his activities. As a result, he has transformed a minor position that was formerly responsible for managing government websites into a designated agent of chaos without limitation and in violation of the separation of powers.

The Founders of this country fought for independence from the British monarchy due in no small part to the King’s despotic power to create an unlimited number of governmental offices and to fill those offices with the King’s supporters. In fact, this practice so severely undermined the Founders’ freedoms that it is a listed grievance in the Declaration of Independence.

Informed by that history, the Framers of the Constitution crafted the Appointments Clause to protect against such tyranny in our system of government. The Appointments Clause was designed to buttress the separation of powers in two ways: first by requiring that Congress create an office before the President can fill it, and second by requiring that the Senate confirm a nominee to an office created by law. These limitations on the President’s power make executive appointments accountable to Congress and make the Senate’s confirmation decisions accountable to the people."
2:52 PM · Feb 14, 2025

[Smokin Joe]

Musk:

Gets no pay.

Can not act on his findings, only report them to people who can.

As such, his direct power is only one of ripping back the rock all these worms have congregated beneath and exposing them and their slimy little worm tracks.

I get that they don't want those interconnections exposed, but ultimately he is doing nothing but providing information to the Executive Branch and whoever wants to see where in the hell our money has been going.

No one elected Milley, who decided he could not only halt an ordered strategic strike, but warn the targets. Now, that was actual power, considering it could have led to the deaths of millions.

[DB]

To tell the chief executive that he cannot audit the executive branch won't stand a constitution challenge - period. If he can't audit it, nobody can.