As Elon Musk leaves his formal position in the United States government, Dozens of legal demands will continue on the powerful role of the billionaire in the Trump administration and the work of the government efficiency department.
Musk announced his departure earlier this week. At a press conference at the White House with President Donald Trump on Friday, Musk said he would remain a “friend and advisor.” He gave no more details about what would imply that.
There are at least three pending demands that accuse Trump to unconstitutionally grant the Executive Director of Tesla Inc. and Spacex the equivalent of a cabinet position In the last four months. The plaintiffs in these cases promise to continue the fight.
“The case is absolutely relevant,” said Anjana Samant, main lawyer of the New Mexico Department of Justice, which leads a group of states in one of the challenges.
Democratic state prosecutors want a judge to invalidate the actions that, according to them, Musk illegally took to alter the operations of the federal government and declare that the Doge project It has gone far beyond what US law allows.
The greatest amount of demands that to date challenge Musk’s activities And Doge will surely continue. They include disputes about Doge’s access to the personal information of Americansif the office is subject to the laws of public records and their role in the cancellation of federal subsidies and contracts, the dismantling of agencies and the dismissal of employees.
Hours after Musk and Trump appear together at the White House, A Federal Court of Appeals imposed on the administration another defeat related to Doge. By 2 votes to 1, an appeal panel kept an order of a lower court in force that prevents the administration from carrying out mass dismissals throughout the US government.
White House spokesman Harrison Fields refused to comment on the next steps of the administration in the various judicial cases, But he said that government lawyers “will continue to fight against each frivolous demand that comes to us.”
A spokesman for the Department of Justice and Musk did not respond to comments requests. The Department of Justice has represented Musk already in court and They are expected to continue defending them against accusations related to their work in the government.
Musk recently criticized Trump’s tax cut proposal, but both praised each other during Friday’s press conference at the Oval Office. He also strongly criticized the wave of judicial failures against the administration, stating that “excessive judicial overreach” is “undermining people’s confidence in the legal system.”
Some legal experts say that Musk’s formal output He could give the Department of Justice reasons to argue in favor of his dismissal.
Jeff Powell, professor of constitutional law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Duke, said that claims on the legality of Musk’s position, according to the design clause of the Constitution, They would lose their validity once he left the public service. Powell described the claims as “unfounded”, since the plaintiffs intend to hold Musk Oa Doge for communicating Trump’s “will” to officials confirmed by the Senate who carried out the actions.
“Musk was a subordinate,” Powell said. “The demands can have other purposes, they can question the substantial validity of the reduction of personnel Or the cancellation of contracts, but that had nothing to do with Musk. ”
Norm Eisen, Executive President of Democracy Defenders Action and main lawyer in another case that challenges Musk’s appointmentHe cited the billionaire comments that he would continue to be involved with the administration during the rest of Trump’s mandate as a reason why he was “very important” that remained part of the court.
“You have to take into account your previous statements that you will intervene, Something that, in my opinion, is unconstitutional, “said Eisen.
‘Main Officer’
Courts can dismiss cases if circumstances change. When Trump lost the 2020 elections and left office in January 2021, The Supreme Court dismissed the prolonged disputes over whether Trump’s commercial interests violated the anti -corruption provisions of the Constitution.
Musk joined the administration as “special government employee”, a temporary status that expires this month. Legal challenges, based on the appointment clause, claim that Musk acted as a “main official”, Similar to the directors of agencies confirmed by the Senate, who only respond to the president. Each of the demands includes other claims and defendants.
This week, a federal judge from Washington denied the government’s request to dismiss the case of states on Musk’s appointment. The American District Judge Tanya Chutkan wrote that there could be a viable demand under the appointment clause Against whoever Trump put in charge of the Doge initiative, given the accusations that the position had evolved to influence multiple agencies.
Brent Ferguson, from Campaign Legal Center, who presented a third constitutional challenge against Musk’s authority in the administration, also against Chutkan, said they were working at full speed. He added that they would not believe in the word of Musk or the White House officials that it is no longer part of Doge’s work and that they would demand evidence that demonstrates their status.
“Regardless of the title that the Government has given it or which ones say it is its functionthe real question about the appointment clause is what real power it has ”said Ferguson.
Dozens of demands more related to Doge activities have been submitted. The judges have issued various decisions, in some cases authorizing the access of the personnel affiliated to Doge to the agency’s records and allowing cuts in the federal expenditure and the workforce. In other cases, they have restricted Doge’s access to the information of Americans, have reactivated spending and have rejoined federal federal staff.
Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, a group involved in several demands against the administration, He said in a statement that they would continue to challenge the legality of what Musk achieved.
“While it may have abandoned Washington, The chaos that has created has not disappeared”He said.
