Democratic AGs Sue to Halt Musk’s Federal Cuts, Accuse Trump of Overreach -

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A group of Democratic state attorneys general have asked a federal court to halt Elon Musk’s bureaucracy-slashing efforts, arguing President Donald Trump has unlawfully given the world’s richest man too much power.

The lawsuit announced Thursday seeks a halt to Musk’s work to cut government payments, employment, and programs.

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The group said the 14 AGs needed to step in because Congress has abdicated its responsibility as an equal branch of government. Hundreds of federal employees have been summarily dismissed in the past several days, and the Trump administration has threatened to shutter several departments created by Congress.

“Donald Trump has grabbed the power of Congress and handed it to an unelected billionaire. It is a blatant and egregious violation of the rule of law,” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said at a press conference announcing the lawsuit. “We don’t have kings in this country and we don’t have billionaire dictators.”

Musk campaigned heavily for Trump, who made him an unpaid “special government employee” shortly after taking office. Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency team has descended upon multiple federal offices, in some cases locking out workers and ordering them to halt work, tearing down sign,s and blocking payments.

Musk has repeatedly announced ‒ often without proof ‒ that his team has found millions of dollars in inappropriate spending. He argues that voters handed Trump a mandate to slash the size of the federal government and save money for taxpayers. Musk’s companies, including SpaceX, receive billions in federal payments, and several of those companies are under investigation by the federal workers he’s targeting.

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Advocates for federal union workers and retirees have filed similar legal actions.

Musk persuaded Trump to offer a buyout to virtually all federal employees and specifically targeted USAID, the international aid arm of the federal government. Democratic members of Congress say neither Musk nor Trump has the authority to close USAID because it was created by Congress.

The complaint argues that Musk’s actions violate the Constitution’s Appointments Clause, which requires senior-level positions like his to be approved by the Senate.

Filing the lawsuit were the state AGs of Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. All are Democrats.