President Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk have been facing a slew of legal roadblocks to their sudden and massive overhaul of the federal government.
For example, federal judges have blocked three of his major executive actions:
- Freezing of federal grants and loans
- Dismantling of the U.S. Agency on International Development
- Banning birthright citizenship for the children of some immigrants
🚨 And another fresh lawsuit this morning: Eight fired federal watchdogs are suing to get their jobs back after Trump ousted them.
But Trump is actually giving Elon even more power: Trump signed a new executive order Tuesday, directing federal agencies to involve the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to carry out workforce cuts and in their hiring decisions.
A surreal moment: Trump invited Musk to the Oval Office to stand alongside him from the resolute desk and defend his new DOGE.
"The people voted for major government reform and that's what the people are going to get," Musk said, defending DOGE. "That's what democracy is all about."
📸 Trump, Musk and Musk's son
The Hill's Alex Gangitano described the moment well: "Tuesday's striking moment at the Oval Office featured the leader of the free world inviting the richest man in the world to give a defense of his goals in front of press brought in for the occasion. One of Musk's young children pulled at his coat at times as the billionaire … argued the federal bureaucracy can't have more power than any elected representative."
How are Republicans feeling about these moves?: The Hill's Alexander Bolton took the temperature of Senate Republicans — they want Trump to respect the rulings of the federal judges. From Bolton: "GOP lawmakers have been reluctant to criticize Trump's actions, fearing it could make them targets for primary challenges next year. But they are growing increasingly worried about the nation plunging into a constitutional crisis if Trump ignores court orders halting his most aggressive actions."
💡 Why this matters: Musk, who has only been in Trump's orbit for roughly seven months and has very little experience in governing, has singlehandedly tried to dismantle major government agencies, buy out hundreds of thousands of federal workers and take over payment systems within the Treasury Department. While Capitol Hill Republicans won't directly bash Trump or Musk, they're concerned about a constitutional crisis over some of their moves.
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