Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) scored a temporary win last week, with a Federal appeals court sparing them from revealing their spending-cut plans and authority – at least for now.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on March 26 granted a stay of Judge Tanya Chutkan’s order, which directed Elon Musk and DOGE to release records and answer questions about their authority and plans to trim Federal spending.
However, the appeals court decision isn’t a final decision on whether DOGE will have to release the records. The appeals court stated that the lower court judge must first rule on the Trump administration’s motion to dismiss before any discovery can proceed.
Chutkan’s decision favored 14 state attorneys general who sued President Trump, DOGE, and Musk, claiming Musk’s authority is unconstitutional without congressional approval, and violates the Appointments Clause. The states sought a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block DOGE from firing employees or accessing Federal data, but Chutkan denied that TRO, citing a lack of evidence of imminent harm.
Now, the state attorneys general aim to uncover that evidence through discovery. The defendants argued that the government’s inner workings aren’t relevant to the Appointments Clause claim, but Chutkan wasn’t fully convinced.
“The court is not convinced, but that is a legal issue appropriate for resolution after fulsome briefing … At this stage, it is sufficient that plaintiffs’ discovery requests intend to reveal the scope of DOGE’s and Musk’s authority,” she wrote.
The White House has also maintained that Musk is not technically a part of DOGE, instead serving as a senior adviser to the president.
Following the appeals court ruling, Chutkan canceled a status hearing scheduled for March 27.