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  • Third judge blocks Trump birthright citizenship order

    Third judge blocks Trump birthright citizenship order

    A third federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.

    The ruling from a New Hampshire judge follows similar rulings from judges in Washington state and Maryland.

    President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One as he prepares to sign a proclamation declaring Feb. 9 Gulf of America Day. (AP/Ben Curtis)

    This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

    Fox News’ David Spunt contributed to this report.

    Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital.

  • Elon Musk alleges B in fraud at Treasury after judge blocks DOGE audit

    Elon Musk alleges $50B in fraud at Treasury after judge blocks DOGE audit

    U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unpacks the power tariffs have in world negotiations on ‘Kudlow.’

    Elon Musk responded to a federal judge’s order temporarily blocking the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) access to sensitive Treasury Department data with a blitz of X posts alleging shocking levels of potential fraud.

    The preliminary injunction issued Saturday by U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer backed 19 Democratic state attorneys general who claimed that giving DOGE “full access” to the Treasury’s payment systems violates the law. 

    Engelmayer scheduled a Feb. 20 hearing, until which time DOGE will have diminished access to Treasury data that includes Americans’ Social Security, Medicare, veterans benefits and tax refund information.

    PALANTIR CEO TOUTS ELON MUSK’S DOGE, ABILITY TO HOLD ‘SACRED COW OF THE DEEP STATE’ ACCOUNTABLE

    But Musk said DOGE had already found major problems with the way the Treasury Department was paying America’s bills before Engelmayer’s injunction.

    “[Friday], I was told that there are currently over $100B/year of entitlements payments to individuals with no SSN or even a temporary ID number. If accurate, this is extremely suspicious,” Musk wrote hours after the ruling. 

    “When I asked if anyone at Treasury had a rough guess for what percentage of that number is unequivocal and obvious fraud, the consensus in the room was about half, so $50B/year or $1B/week!! This is utterly insane and must be addressed immediately.”

    SpaceX and Tesla founder Elon Musk speaks during an America PAC town hall Oct. 26, 2024, in Lancaster, Pa.  (Samuel Corum/Getty Images / Getty Images)

    The X, Tesla and SpaceX owner and Trump confidante also implied that previous Treasury officials blocked their employees from investigating waste.

    “Nobody in Treasury management cared enough before,” Musk wrote. “I do want to credit the working level people in Treasury who have wanted to do this for many years, but have been stopped by prior management.”

    One of the goals agreed upon by DOGE and the Treasury Department, Musk said, is to “require that all outgoing government payments have a payment categorization code, which is necessary in order to pass financial audits.”

    “This is frequently left blank, making audits almost impossible,” he added.

    Musk also stressed that all Treasury payments “must also include a rationale for the payment in the comment field, which is currently left blank.”

    ELON MUSK’S DOGE MAKES ANOTHER HIRING PUSH

    The U.S. Treasury Building

    The U.S. Treasury Building in Washington, D.C.  (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Getty Images)

    “Importantly, we are not yet applying ANY judgment to this rationale, but simply requiring that SOME attempt be made to explain the payment more than NOTHING!” Musk wrote. “The DO-NOT-PAY list of entities known to be fraudulent or people who are dead or are probable fronts for terrorist organizations or do not match Congressional appropriations must actually be implemented and not ignored.

    “Also, it can currently take up to a year to get on this list, which is far too long. This list should be updated at least weekly, if not daily,” the entrepreneur added. “The above super obvious and necessary changes are being implemented by existing, long-time career government employees, not anyone from @DOGE.”

    Elon Musk

    Elon Musk on Capitol Hill Dec. 5, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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    Musk added that it was “ridiculous that these changes didn’t exist already” and revealed he was recently told of massive waste in entitlement payments, to the tune of $1 billion per week.

    “Everything at Treasury was geared towards complain[t] minimization,” he added. “People who receive money don’t complain, but people who don’t receive money (especially fraudsters) complain very loudly, so the fraud was allowed to continue.”

  • Elon Musk’s DOGE temporarily blocked from Treasury systems: judge

    Elon Musk’s DOGE temporarily blocked from Treasury systems: judge

    President Donald Trump on Friday said Elon Musk is doing a “very good job” with the Department of Government Efficiency.

    Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s government efficiency team has been temporarily blocked from accessing certain government systems, according to a federal judge’s ruling on Saturday.

    U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer issued the ruling after a group of attorneys general sued Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on Friday, arguing that the presidential commission does not have the right to access U.S. Department of Treasury systems.

    The order was condemned by Musk, who called the decision “absolutely insane” in an X post.

    “How on Earth are we supposed to stop fraud and waste of taxpayer money without looking at how money is spent?”

    PALANTIR CEO TOUTS ELON MUSK’S DOGE, ABILITY TO HOLD ‘SACRED COW OF THE DEEP STATE’ ACCOUNTABLE

    Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X.  (Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes / Reuters Photos)

    This is a breaking news story. Check back with us for updates.

    Reuters contributed to this report.

  • Judge blocks Trump from placing 2,200 USAID workers on leave

    Judge blocks Trump from placing 2,200 USAID workers on leave

    A federal judge on Friday ordered a temporary block on plans by the Trump administration to put 2,200 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development on leave.

    U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, also agreed to block an order that would have given just 30 days for the thousands of overseas USAID workers the administration wanted to place on abrupt administrative leave to move their families back to the U.S. at the government’s expense.

    Both actions by the administration would have exposed the workers and their families to unnecessary risk and expense, according to the judge.

    This comes as President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, who leads the Department of Government Efficiency, seek to dismantle the agency.

    TOP DEM STRATEGISTS WARN USAID FUNDING FIGHT IS A ‘TRAP’ FOR THE PARTY

    Demonstrators and lawmakers rally against President Donald Trump and his ally Elon Musk as they disrupt the federal government, including dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    Nichols noted that staffers living overseas have said the administration had cut some workers off from government emails and other communication systems required to reach the U.S. government in case of a health or safety emergency.

    USAID contractors in various regions, including the Middle East, even reported that “panic button” apps had been removed from their phones or disabled when the administration abruptly placed them on leave.

    “Administrative leave in Syria is not the same as administrative leave in Bethesda,” the judge said.

    USAID sign

    An employee of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) who wished to remain anonymous protests outside the USAID headquarters on February 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

    The judge also pointed to workers stating difficulties that would arise from the 30-day timeline to return to the U.S., including that they had no home to return to in the U.S. after decades overseas and that they would be forced to pull children with special needs out of school in the middle of the school year.

    Nichols ordered 500 USAID staffers who had already been placed on leave by the administration to be reinstated.

    But the judge declined a request from two federal employee associations to grant a temporary block on an administration-imposed funding freeze that has shut down the agency and its work, pending more hearings on the workers’ lawsuit.

    USAID STAFFERS STUNNED, ANGERED BY TRUMP ADMIN’S DOGE SHUTDOWN OF $40B AGENCY

    USAID HQ

    The American flag flying alone beside an empty flagpole that previously had the flag of USAID is pictured in the reflection of a window that previously had the sign and the seal of USAID, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP)

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    Nichols emphasized in the hearing earlier Friday that his order to pause the administration’s actions was not a decision on the employees’ request to block the administration’s efforts to quickly destroy the agency.

    “CLOSE IT DOWN,” Trump said on Truth Social, referring to USAID, ahead of the judge’s ruling.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

  • Federal judge rules not to immediately block DOGE access to Labor Department systems

    Federal judge rules not to immediately block DOGE access to Labor Department systems

    A federal judge on Friday said he would not immediately block the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, from accessing systems at the Labor Department.

    U.S. District Judge John Bates said he had concerns about DOGE but that the labor unions who sued to block their access to the systems have not yet provided evidence of any legal injury.

    “Although the court harbors concerns about defendants’ alleged conduct, it must deny plaintiffs’ motion at this time,” Bates wrote.

    The Labor Department has investigated companies like SpaceX and Tesla that are owned by Elon Musk, who leads DOGE, and keeps records on these investigations. The department also has information about these companies’ competitors’ trade secrets, the unions said in the lawsuit.

    FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS LIMITED DOGE ACCESS TO SENSITIVE TREASURY DEPARTMENT PAYMENT SYSTEM RECORDS

    Elon Musk, who is leading the Department of Government Efficiency. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

    The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has investigated and fined SpaceX and Tesla over worker safety, the unions said.

    The Labor Department’s systems contain medical and financial records of millions of Americans, including those who have filed safety complaints about their employers.

    The ruling comes after the Trump administration agreed earlier this week that DOGE would not receive access to the Labor Department until this court decision.

    The Justice Department said there are three DOGE staffers assigned to the Labor Department and reporting to its acting secretary, although they have been made special government employees and are required to follow the law with any sensitive information about corporations or workers as they conduct a review.

    Elon Musk in Washington state

    Elon Musk speaks at the SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition in Washington, D.C., on March 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

    Musk’s DOGE team had gained access to sensitive Treasury Department payment systems, although a judge has since blocked that access to Treasury records containing sensitive personal data such as Social Security and bank account numbers for millions of Americans. DOGE has also largely dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development and offered financial incentives to millions of federal workers to resign.

    “At every step, DOGE is violating multiple laws, from constitutional limits on executive power, to laws protecting civil servants from arbitrary threats and adverse action, to crucial protections for government data collected and stored on hundreds of millions of Americans,” labor union lawyers represented by the advocacy group Democracy Forward wrote.

    ELON MUSK DUNKS ON SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER, DECLARING ‘HYSTERICAL REACTIONS’ DEMONSTRATE DOGE’S IMPORTANCE

    Elon Musk at Tesla factory

    Elon Musk attends the opening of the Tesla factory Berlin Brandenburg in Gruenheide, Germany on March 22, 2022. (Patrick Pleul/Pool Photo via AP)

    Labor Department leadership told a union member this week that DOGE would be visiting and workers should let them do “whatever they ask, not to push back, not to ask questions,” the unions wrote.

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    The Justice Department said there is no evidence of wrongdoing and the judge should not issue “a sweeping, prophylactic order … based on plaintiffs’ rank speculation that DOL will violate the law.”

    Nineteen states have sued over DOGE’s access to federal payment systems.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

  • Judge temporarily blocks 2,200 USAID workers from being placed on leave by midnight

    Judge temporarily blocks 2,200 USAID workers from being placed on leave by midnight

    A Trump-appointed judge said at an emergency hearing on Friday that he would put a temporary block on the administration’s plan to put 2,200 U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) employees on paid leave by midnight, Fox News has learned. 

    He also told a government lawyer that he’s not sure whether he would include the 500 employees already placed on leave in his order. 

    U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols sided with two federal employee associations – the American Foreign Service Association and the American Federation of Government Employees – who filed lawsuits over the order on Thursday. 

    Government officials “failed to acknowledge the catastrophic consequences of their actions, both as they pertain to American workers, the lives of millions around the world, and to US national interests,” the lawsuit says. 

    Demonstrators rally in support of USAID.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    Nichols said that the plaintiffs had “established irreparable harm,” adding that “there’s zero harm to the government to pausing this for some short period of time.” 

    Nichols added that it would be a “very limited” temporary restraining order.

    “CLOSE IT DOWN!” President Trump wrote on Truth Social earlier Friday of the U.S. agency that oversees international development. 

    An official with USAID told reporters on Friday that the agency had “ceased to exist,” with the majority of employees gone and funding stopped. 

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that the most crucial life-saving programs administrated by USAID overseas were given waivers to continue. 

    USAID was founded by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 and had more than 10,000 employees and a budget of about $40 billion a year. 

    USAID building

    U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) headquarters in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

    On Friday, the USAID website said that at midnight “all USAID direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs. Essential personnel expected to continue working will be informed by Agency leadership by Thursday, February 6, at 3:00pm (EST).” 

    Trump and Elon Musk, who runs the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, have said they might move USAID’s surviving life-saving programs under the State Department. 

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    Rubio said the U.S. government will continue providing foreign aid, “but it is going to be foreign aid that makes sense and is aligned with our national interest.”

    Democratic critics have said the move is illegal and needs Congressional approval. 

    The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

  • Federal judge blocks Trump’s birthright citizenship order

    Federal judge blocks Trump’s birthright citizenship order

    In a Washington state courtroom, a federal judge scolded the Trump administration Thursday as he blocked an order restricting birthright citizenship while criticizing the president over his executive order.

    “It has become ever more apparent that, to our president, the rule of law is but an impediment to his policy goals. The rule of law is, according to him, something to navigate around or simply ignore, whether that be for political or personal gain,” U.S. District Judge John Coughenour said while announcing his ruling from a Seattle courtroom. 

    In his order, Coughenour said citizenship by birth “is an unequivocal Constitutional right.”

    TRUMP ADMIN HITS BACK AS ACLU LAUNCHES LAWSUIT ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP: ‘READY TO FACE THEM’

    President Donald Trump signed an executive order to end birthright citizenship.  (Evan Vucci/AP)

    “It is one of the precious principles that makes the United States the great nation that it is,” the ruling states. “The president cannot change, limit, or qualify this Constitutional right via an executive order.”

    Thursday’s ruling came a day after a Maryland federal judge also blocked Trump’s executive order.

    In that case, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, a Biden appointee, noted a prior ruling that had paused the implementation of Trump’s order. 

    Boardman argued citizenship is a “national concern that demands a uniform policy.” The prior ruling only paused implementation of Trump’s order for 14 days, however, while Boardman’s ruling will last through appeal.

    “Citizenship is a most precious right, expressly granted by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution,” she wrote in her ruling.

    TRUMP’S HOUSE GOP ALLIES PUSH BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP BILL AFTER PROGRESSIVE FURY AT PRESIDENTIAL ORDER

    ICE agents arrest illegal aliens

    ICE agents arrested seven illegal immigrants during a workforce operation raid. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

    At issue is whether the order violates the 14th Amendment, which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”   

    Trump’s order essentially withholds citizenship for the American-born children of illegal immigrants. Critics contend that Trump exceeded his authority.

    Coughenour said Trump was trying to amend the 14th Amendment for political reasons. 

    “In this courtroom and under my watch, the rule of law is a bright beacon, which I intend to follow,” the judge said.

    Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House. 

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    Meanwhile, multiple states have sued to stop the executive order. The case in Seattle was brought by four states — Arizona, Illinois, Oregon and Washington.

    The Justice Department is expected to appeal the ruling.  

  • Federal judge delays Trump administration’s buyout deadline for federal workers

    Federal judge delays Trump administration’s buyout deadline for federal workers

    A federal judge pushed back the deadline for President Donald Trump’s buyout offer for federal workers on Thursday.

    Trump’s administration initially told federal workers they needed to decide whether to accept the buyout offer by Thursday. The new ruling delays the deadline to at least Monday, with another hearing on the issue scheduled for that day.

    This is a developing story. Check back soon for udpates.

    Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to [email protected], or on Twitter: @Hagstrom_Anders.

  • Federal judge orders limited DOGE access to sensitive Treasury Department payment system records

    Federal judge orders limited DOGE access to sensitive Treasury Department payment system records

    A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from obtaining access to certain Treasury Department payment records.

    Treasury officials “will not provide access to any payment record or payment system of records maintained within the [Treasury] Bureau of Fiscal Service,” Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly wrote in a temporary restraining order.

    Elon Musk, the chair of DOGE, has been leading an investigation into USAID’s spending practices as the agency comes to a standstill. (Getty Images)

    This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. 

    Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital.

  • Harry’s immigration records ‘likely’ to be disclosed, judge says in first hearing under Trump

    Harry’s immigration records ‘likely’ to be disclosed, judge says in first hearing under Trump

    A federal judge indicated that he is “likely” to release immigration files on Prince Harry after the first hearing in the royal’s high-profile case since President Donald Trump took office.

    U.S. District Court Judge Carl J. Nichols said Harry’s files should be released “to the maximum extent possible,” during Wednesday’s hearing in Washington, D.C., according to a report from the New York Post, with the judge reasoning that he is “required to make public everything that can be made public” but would take care not to violate any privacy laws.

    “I’m going to take this in stages,” Nichols said, noting that the government will have the ability to propose potential redactions.

    The Wednesday hearing marked the first in the case since the inauguration of Trump, who has been pressed in recent weeks to step in and unseal Harry’s immigration records.

    PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE SLAMMED BY JUSTINE BATEMAN FOR BEING ‘DISASTER TOURISTS’ AMID CALIFORNIA FIRES

    Prince Harry’s immigration paperwork is under scrutiny over allegations he lied on some key documents. (Getty Images)

    “I’ll be urging the president to release Prince Harry’s immigration records and the president does have that legal authority to do that,” Nile Gardiner of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank behind the lawsuit to unseal Harry’s records, told the New York Post.

    “It’s important because this is an issue of the rule of law, transparency and accountability. No one should be above the law,” Gardiner added. “Donald Trump is ushering in a new era of strict border control enforcement, and you know, Prince Harry should be held fully to account as he has admitted to extensive illegal drug use.”

    PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE, VISIT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TO SUPPORT WILDFIRE VICTIMS, RECOVERY EFFORTS

    At issue in the case is whether Harry lied on immigration forms or was provided with special treatment when he initially moved to the U.S. in 2020, a question that arose after the royal admitted to using illegal drugs in his memoir “Spare,” which was released in 2023.

    The admission by Harry sparked a lawsuit by the Heritage Foundation, which sued the Department of Homeland Security in an attempt to have the royal’s immigration records released.

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle smiling

    Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

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    For his part, Trump indicated on the campaign trail that he is open to deporting Harry and has in the past been critical of the royal’s move to the United States.

    “He has been so disrespectful to the country, and I think he’s an embarrassment,” Trump said in a 2022 interview with Piers Morgan.

    Michael Lee is a writer for Fox News. Prior to joining Fox News, Michael worked for the Washington Examiner, Bongino.com, and Unbiased America. He has covered politics for more than eight years.