For the last two months, the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has worked in secrecy under the orders of President Donald Trump and his 'first buddy' Elon Musk.
That concealed approach will continue no more, as a federal judge appointed by the former 44th US president Barack Obama has ordered the Tesla CEO to reveal DOGE's government plan and identify all of its employees.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan has ordered the Tesla CEO to provide certain information about his government dealings.
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This comes as 14 Democratic state attorney generals are taking Trump, Musk, and DOGE to court, claiming that Musk is unconstitutionally wielding power, Politico reports.
DOGE has three weeks to provide Chutkan with the information requested, which she will use to decide whether or not to block DOGE's operations completely.
The eight-page court filing included six interrogatories.
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The first reads: "Identify every individual who has served as DOGE Administrator or as the functional head of DOGE, including in an acting capacity, since January 20, 2025, and the dates served in that capacity.
"As part of this response, identify all individuals with authority to hire or terminate employment of DOGE personnel since January 20, 2025."
As well as requests for admission, including the following: "Admit that Elon Musk is not supervised by any Officer of the United States other than the President of the United States."
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Despite not being voted in by the public, Musk has been heading up the new government division alongside former Republican presidential candidate and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.
Their mission is to streamline the US government through plans to axe thousands of jobs and drastically reduce the wage bill, and once they have finished their mission, they have vowed to disband the department - setting a completion date of no later than July 4, 2026... Independence Day next year.
As Trump puts it, their primary objective is to 'dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies'.
The initiative has already engaged in mass layoffs across the country, overseen the removal of diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) programs, and it's made sizeable cuts to the Department of Education.
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Additionally, 1,600 employees at USAID, which stands for the United States Agency for International Development, have been fired, and a further 4,200 workers have been placed on leave.
DOGE is determined to cut the workforce from around 10,000 employees to roughly 500.
Topics: Court, Elon Musk, Politics, Donald Trump
Joe Yates