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The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., says
the actions taken by Musk at the helm of DOGE can only be taken
by a nominated and Senate-confirmed official. It sites
constitutional provisions that delineate the powers of Congress
and the president.
The attorneys general said the court should bar Musk from
issuing orders to anyone in the executive branch outside DOGE
and declare that his actions have no legal effect.
They asked the court to order Musk to identify ways that “any
data obtained through unlawful agency access was used,” destroy
“such unauthorized access in his or DOGE’s possession” and bar
Musk and DOGE from ordering changes in the disbursement of
public funds, canceling government contracts, taking steps to
dismantle agencies and more.
“We are asking the court to invalidate his directives and
actions and to issue a restraining order,” Michigan Attorney
General Dana Nessel said during an online news conference
alongside attorneys general from Arizona and New Mexico.
California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts,
Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington
attorneys general also joined the lawsuit.
Musk’s team has roamed from agency to agency, tapping into
computer systems, digging into budgets and searching for what he
calls waste, fraud and abuse, while lawsuits pile up claiming
President Donald Trump and DOGE are violating the law.
On Thursday, Musk called for the U.S. to “delete entire
agencies” from the federal government as part of his push to
radically cut spending and restructure its priorities.
Democratic attorneys general say Musk's approach is generating
profound concerns among their constituents about the secure
handling of sensitive information at agencies including the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the IRS.
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said Trump is
demonstrating “weakness” in deploying Musk rather than advancing
his agenda through a Republican-controlled Congress.
“Move fast and breaking things may work in Silicon Valley for a
tech company," Torrez said. "It’s not good governance and it’s
unconstitutional.”
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Associated Press reporter Jacques Billeaud contributed from
Phoenix.
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