LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has suited up for another big legal brawl: this time taking on Elon Musk, the self-styled disruptor-in-chief of the federal government.
In a lawsuit filed last on Feb. 13, alongside 13 other Democratic attorneys general, Nessel argues that Musk’s new gig – running Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) – is not only unconstitutional but a direct threat to democracy itself.
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This follows DOGE’s ongoing revelations of massive government waste, fraud, and abuse across every federal department it has been “auditing.” This lawsuit is another one among Nessel’s growing list of legal battles against President Trump, clearly showing that Michigan’s AG has made her anti- Trump crusade a daily priority. As we reported last week, she’s fully embraced the role of “the resistance” against the 47th president.
Democrats cry foul over Trump and Musk’s DOGE plans.
When Trump announced the creation of DOGE, many people assumed it was just another MAGA-era publicity stunt; however, the lawsuit alleges something much more serious: Elon Musk, acting as the “DOGE Administrator,” has been handed sweeping powers to gut agencies, access sensitive data, and decide which federal employees get to keep their jobs.
According to Nessel and her Democratic colleagues, this violates the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which mandates Senate confirmation for high-level executive roles. Conveniently left out of the lawsuit is a history of the numerous “czar” positions created by Democratic President Barack Hussein Obama II, and other presidents, to bypass the process and push their agendas forward. Nevertheless, the lawsuit argues “There is no greater threat to democracy than the accumulation of state power in the hands of a single, unelected individual.”
Musk vs. the swamp.
The lawsuit lays out a laundry list of abuses, painting Musk as a Silicon Valley monarch slashing through Washington’s bureaucracy with a flamethrower. It claims DOGE has:
- Hijacked federal databases containing financial and tax records.
- Locked out career civil servants
- Shut down federal websites
- Accessed Department of Energy systems including nuclear oversight
Meanwhile, Musk himself has been unapologetic, proudly declaring that his team is “shutting down illegal payments” and streamlining government.
Nessel’s big legal swing.
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Nessel, never one to shy away from a headline-worthy legal fight, is demanding, along with the other attorneys general, that the courts block Musk from issuing orders to federal agencies and invalidate all of his previous directives. They argue that Musk’s unchecked power grab is not only unconstitutional but also disastrous for the country, which relies on billions in federal funding for things like law enforcement, healthcare, and education.
“This extraordinary assault on our federal government by the unelected, unappointed billionaire Elon Musk usurps the right of the Senate to advise and consent and is plainly unconstitutional. This illegal exercise of authority by Musk is deeply harmful to the residents of Michigan,” Nessel said. “That is why today we are asking the Court to invalidate his directives and actions and to issue a restraining order barring Musk and the so-called Department of Government Efficiency from exercising governmental authority reserved for officers of the United States over any other agency in the executive branch of the federal government.”
Nessel continued to say in her press release about the lawsuit, “The far-reaching and unauthorized intrusion metastasizing throughout the federal government has terrified Michiganders and all Americans, leaving them feeling paralyzed with no means to protect themselves from Musk’s whirlwind efforts to dismantle valued programs, contracts, workers and entire agencies.”
Nessel appeared in a CNN interview recently about the lawsuit and said about Musk, “He was never confirmed by the Senate, he’s got no security clearance, he didn’t do a financial disclosure report, they haven’t vetted him for conflicts of interest…” She added that he doesn’t have the power to do what he has in even one department let alone 18 or 20 others to get “state secrets.” She added, “God knows what he’s doing with it all.”
Will the courts leash Musk?
The real question now: Will this lawsuit actually put the brakes on Musk, or is it just another skirmish in the never-ending legal and political tug-of-war between red and blue states? According to news reports, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who was appointed by President Obama, is expected to rule today on the lawsuit. During a recent hearing, Judge Chutkan expressed doubts about granting an immediate temporary restraining order, citing insufficient concrete evidence of imminent harm presented by the plaintiffs.
UPDATE: U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan on Tuesday, Feb. 18th rejected a request from the 14 Democratic state attorneys general to immediately slap broad restrictions on Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Chutkan ruled that they failed to demonstrate the necessary proof of irreparable harm at this stage of the case.
