US: Court Refuses Request by 14 States to Restrict DOGE’s Powers

 

A request by 14 states to impose restrictions on the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE has been rejected by a Federal court in the US.

 

This is according to a report on Wednesday by the Hill.

 

On February 13, 2024, U.S. states filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump and the DOGE head, Elon Musk, accusing DOGE of enjoying unlimited powers and violating the U.S. Constitution.

 

They claimed that Musk was not officially appointed to his post by the president and the Senate did not approve that decision, thus violating Article 2 of the constitution, the Hill reported.

 

However, U.S. District Judge, Tanya Chutkan said in her ruling that the complaint about DOGE’s unlimited power and lack of accountability to the senate was lawful but the court could not impose restrictions because there was no “clear evidence of imminent, irreparable harm’’ caused by the agency.

 

This is coming after DOGE claimed that it has saved American taxpayers $55 billion in less than a month.

 

Meanwhile, in February, New York Attorney General Letitia James said that DOGE’s level of access to information was “unlawful, unprecedented, and unacceptable.’’

 

Shortly after taking office, Trump signed an executive order renaming the U.S. Digital Service, an office created during Barack Obama’s presidency, as the U.S. DOGE Service.

 

Musk was appointed to head the agency, whose priorities include cutting costs and restructuring federal agencies.