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Tag: ruling

Musk’s DOGE effort faces key hurdle as judge slated to issue ruling

The Trump administration’s quest to tame the sprawling federal bureaucratic leviathan is slated to face a key hurdle on Monday, as Judge Tanya Chutkan is expected to rule after more than a dozen states sought a temporary restraining order, accusing Elon Musk of “unconstitutional” actions.

Musk, who is spearheading the effort to identify government components that can be eliminated or slimmed down, has been widely hailed by the political right.

But he has been scrutinized and criticized by many on the political left as they raise alarms about DOGE probes.

While Musk is leading the charge, he is doing so with President Donald Trump’s blessing, and the commander in chief is standing firmly behind the push to root out government waste.

“DOGE: BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF WASTE, FRAUD, AND ABUSE BEING FOUND. CAMPAIGN PROMISE. IMPORTANT FOR AMERICA!!!” he declared in a Truth Social post last week.

ELON MUSK SAYS MILLIONS IN SOCIAL SECURITY DATABASE ARE BETWEEN AGES OF 100 AND 159

President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16, 2024, in New York City. (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

In a post late Sunday night, Musk indicated that a Social Security database lists scads of people as 100 or older “with the death field set to FALSE!”

“Maybe Twilight is real and there are a lot of vampires collecting Social Security,” he quipped.

Musk shared a chart that indicated there were millions of individuals listed between the ages of 100 and 159, as well as some listed with ages even higher than that.

A Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General Report issued in 2023 noted, “Our audit revealed that the Numident includes approximately 18.8 million more ‘living’ numberholders age 100 or older than the U.S. Census Bureau estimates are alive and residing in the United States.”

“Agency officials noted that, as of March 2023, SSA had issued approximately 531 million unique SSNs, and the 18.9 million records represent approximately 3.6 percent of all Numident records. Officials also noted that almost none of the 18.9 million numberholders currently receive SSA payments,” the report stated. “At the time of our review, approximately 44,000 of the 18.9 million numberholders were receiving SSA payments,” a footnote added.

The audit was conducted from September 2021 to May 2023, an appendix on the report indicated.

TREASURY ‘MISTAKENLY’ GAVE MUSK DOGE WORKER ABILITY TO CHANGE PAYMENTS SYSTEM: COURT DOCS

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., declared in a post on X that while he wants to increase government efficiency and save billions of taxpayer dollars, “Rummaging through your personal s— is *not* that.”

“A party of chaos loses – always,” he added in the Monday tweet.

But Musk, a billionaire business magnate, fired back.

“Bruh, if I wanted to rummage through random personal s—, I could have done that at PAYPAL. Hello???” Musk declared. “Having tens of millions of people marked in Social Security as ‘ALIVE’ when they are definitely dead is a HUGE problem. Obviously. Some of these people would have been alive before America existed as a country. Think about that for a second …”

Their exchange continued, as Fetterman responded.

“Elon, the DOGE mission resonated in PA; I came at it with common sense and an open-mind,” Fetterman replied. “For many, it’s causing chaos and confusion – which IMO, doesn’t help DOGE. PA voters want their personal info secured and taxes spent wisely. Safe to assume both are priorities?”

“I love the people,” Musk responded. “We just want to fix the waste and fraud that is bankrupting the country. The scrutiny on me is extreme, so it’s not like I could ‘get away’ with something, nor do I have any incentive to do so.”

ACTING HEAD OF SOCIAL SECURITY QUITS AFTER CLASH WITH DOGE OVER DATA: REPORT

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An interview featuring Trump and Musk is slated to air Tuesday night on Fox News Channel’s “Hannity.”

Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.

February 18, 2025
Trump 100% disagrees with federal judge’s ‘crazy’ ruling blocking DOGE from Treasury system

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President Donald Trump “100 percent” disagrees with a federal judge’s ruling on Saturday that bars the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing the Treasury Department, he said during an exclusive interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier.

“Nineteen states attorneys general filed a lawsuit, and early Saturday a judge agreed with them to restrict Elon Musk and his government efficiency team, DOGE, from accessing Treasury Department payment and data systems. They said there was a risk of ‘irreparable harm.’ What do you make of that? And does that slow you down and what you want to do?” Baier asked Trump in the interview clip.

“No, I disagree with it 100%. I think it’s crazy. And we have to solve the efficiency problem. We have to solve the fraud, waste, abuse, all the things that have gone into the government. You take a look at the USAID, the kind of fraud in there,” Trump responded.

U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of New York Paul Engelmayer, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, issued a temporary restraining order Saturday that sided with 19 Democratic state attorneys general who claimed that giving DOGE “full access” to the Treasury’s payment systems violates the law. The lawsuit was spearheaded by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

JUDGE’S ‘HOPELESSLY AMBIGUOUS’ ORDER BARRING DOGE FROM TREASURY SPARKS CONCERN BESSENT MAY ALSO BE LOCKED OUT

Fox News host Bret Baier will sit down with President Trump for an interview on Super Bowl Sunday. (Fox New)

The judge’s sweeping order, issued Saturday, bars DOGE from accessing the Treasury system until at least Feb. 14, when Engelmayer scheduled a hearing to revisit the matter.

The language of the order specifically bars “political appointees, special government employees, and any government employee detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department access to Treasury Department payment systems or any other data maintained by the Treasury Department containing personally identifiable information.” Trump, Secretary Scott Bessent and the U.S. Treasury are named as defendants in the case.

FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS ELON MUSK’S DOGE FROM ACCESSING TREASURY RECORDS AFTER DEMOCRATIC AGS FILE LAWSUIT

President Trump speaks (Fox News)

Musk, Vice President JD Vance and other conservatives aligned with Trump have slammed the order.

“If a judge tried to tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be illegal. If a judge tried to command the attorney general in how to use her discretion as a prosecutor, that’s also illegal. Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power,” Vance posted to X on Sunday of the order.

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

Trump spoke with Baier in an exclusive interview with Fox News ahead of the Super Bowl, which Trump will attend. The pair discussed the president’s long love of sports and football, as well as politics and DOGE.

“We’re talking about hundreds of millions of dollars of money that’s going to places where it shouldn’t be going,” Trump said when asked about what DOGE has found while auditing federal agencies in search of government overspending, fraud and corruption.

PRESIDENT TRUMP PREDICTS ELON MUSK WILL FIND ‘HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS’ IN WASTE IN NEXT DOGE DIRECTIVES

“Where if I read a list, you’d say, this is ridiculous, and you’ve read the same list and there are many that you haven’t even seen, it’s crazy. It’s a big scam. Now there’s some good money and we can do that through, any one of a number. I think I’d rather give it to Marco Rubio over at the State Department. Let him take care of the few good ones. So, I don’t know if it’s kickbacks or what’s going on, but the people. Look, I ran on this, and the people want me to find it. And I’ve had a great help with Elon Musk, who’s been terrific,” he continued.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on Friday Nov. 29, 2024 to discuss topics like the economy, illegal immigration and a proposed 25% tariff. (Justin Trudeau X)

Baier also asked Trump about his recent comments about Canada becoming the U.S.’ 51st state and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeay saying last week that Trump’s desire to acquire the nation is a “a real thing.”

TRUDEAU SAYS TRUMP IS SERIOUS ABOUT CANADA BECOMING 51ST STATE: REPORTS

“Yeah, it is,” Trump said when asked about Trudeau’s remark. “I think Canada would be much better off being a 51st state because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada, and I’m not going to let that happen. It’s too much. Why are we paying $200 billion a year essentially in subsidy to Canada? Now, if they’re our 51st state, I don’t mind doing it.”

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Trump will spend his Sunday evening in New Orleans, where the Chiefs and Eagles will face off in the Super Bowl. Trump is expected to return to the White House on Sunday evening following the game.

Baier’s full interview with Trump will air Monday during “Special Report with Bret Baier.”

February 10, 2025
Trump admin appeals ruling blocking birthright citizenship order

The Trump Justice Department appealed a Thursday order blocking the president’s birthright citizenship order, hours after the ruling was issued.

The Justice Department filed its appeal to the Ninth Circuit on Thursday evening. The move came shortly after U.S. District Judge John Coughenour extended a temporary restraining order he had previously issued. Coughenour notably scolded the Trump administration in the Washington courtroom, accusing the administration of ignoring the rule of law for political and personal gain.

“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,” Coughenour said while announcing his ruling.

FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP ORDER: ‘UNEQUIVOCAL CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT’

The appeal will now go up to the Ninth Circuit, which covers Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington and Guam. The Court of Appeals notably issues more progressive rulings with a higher reversal rate than other circuit courts.

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

President Donald Trump issued the executive order, titled, “Protecting The Meaning And Value Of American Citizenship,” on Inauguration Day. (Getty)

U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, a former President Joe Biden appointee, noted the Washington ruling that had previously paused Trump’s order from going into effect.

Boardman said citizenship is a “national concern that demands a uniform policy,” continuing on to say that no court has yet sided with the administration on the matter.

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

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

Trump issued the executive order, titled, “Protecting The Meaning And Value Of American Citizenship,” on Inauguration Day. The order seeks to end birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants and was one of several orders he signed that day to overhaul U.S. immigration policy and border security.

The executive order seeks to end birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants and was one of several orders President Donald Trump signed to overhaul U.S. immigration policy and border security. (Getty Images)

Supporters and opponents of the order disagree over the meaning of 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.”

The primary disagreement is over the clause, “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.”

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

Some legal experts argue that such a move is a constitutional change and cannot be made via executive order. Trump advisers and other conservative legal scholars have previously argued that the idea of giving birthright citizenship to children of illegal immigrants is based on a misreading of the amendment.

The bill was introduced by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (SC), Katie Britt (AL), and Ted Cruz (TX), left. (Getty Images)

Senate Republicans recently introduced a bill that would reform U.S. law to end birthright citizenship in light of the executive order. The bill, titled, the “Birthright Citizenship Act of 2025,” would end the practice of automatically conferring citizenship status on people born in the U.S. of parents who are either illegal immigrants or who are in the country legally on a temporary basis.

The bill was introduced by Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Katie Britt of Alabama, and Ted Cruz of Texas.

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The bill’s sponsors said in a statement that the measure would address what they called “one of the biggest magnets for illegal immigration,” which they believe poses a weakness to national security.

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano, Adam Shaw and Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.

Haley Chi-Sing is a Writer for Fox News Digital. You can reach her at @haleychising on X.

February 7, 2025