Overview
- A federal judge allowed claims to proceed that the Department of Government Efficiency acted without legal authority and that Elon Musk exercised powers that would normally require Senate confirmation.
- The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to stop the watchdog group CREW from getting DOGE records and testimony by arguing the initiative is not an agency covered by the Freedom of Information Act.
- The Supreme Court previously narrowed the case by limiting discovery into DOGE’s internal recommendations, and lower courts later permitted a tighter inquiry into its structure and any actions it directed, including a deposition of administrator Amy Gleason.
- Court filings in related cases show DOGE accessed Americans’ personal data and communicated with a political advocacy group seeking help analyzing state voter rolls, and a judge ordered a search for any phone numbers Musk used while at the White House.
- A judge let widely shared deposition videos of former DOGE staff remain online in a separate grants lawsuit, and coverage from Gizmodo, Hindustan Times, and The Sunday Guardian frames the fight as both legal risk for Musk and a potential cutback in government transparency.