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Musk is not an employee of DOGE and "has no actual or formal authority," White House says
CBS News ^ | February 18, 2025 | By Aimee Picchi (D-CBS)

Posted on 02/18/2025 1:13:54 PM PST by Oldeconomybuyer

Billionaire Elon Musk's role in the Trump administration is to find ways to cut costs through the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. But a new court filing from the White House states that the Tesla CEO isn't an employee of DOGE, adding that Musk "has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself."

The White House's Feb. 17 filing came at the request of U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is hearing a case about the constitutionality of Musk's actions since the start of Mr. Trump's presidency.

The lawsuit claims that Musk "does not occupy an office created by law and has no authority to exercise the powers of a principal officer, or any other officer."

"There is no greater threat to democracy than the accumulation of state power in the hands of a single, unelected individual," the lawsuit alleges. "In recent weeks, defendant Elon Musk, with President Donald J. Trump's approval, has roamed through the federal government unraveling agencies, accessing sensitive data and causing mass chaos and confusion for state and local governments, federal employees and the American people," the lawsuit further claims.

The Feb. 17 filing states that Musk is working as a "senior adviser to the president," comparing his role to that of Anita Dunn under the Biden administration. Dunn served as a special government employee when she advised former President Biden, the filing noted.

"Like other senior White House advisers, Mr. Musk has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself," the filing said. "Mr. Musk can only advise the president and communicate the president's directives."

(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: doge; journalism; musk; press
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1 posted on 02/18/2025 1:13:54 PM PST by Oldeconomybuyer
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

LOL uni-party and the media outplayed again


2 posted on 02/18/2025 1:14:33 PM PST by Skwor
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

We can’t fire him, because he doesn’t have a job. Let’s call him “Kramer”.


3 posted on 02/18/2025 1:15:36 PM PST by 1Old Pro
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Didn’t we know that before Trump was inaugurated?


4 posted on 02/18/2025 1:17:03 PM PST by gitmo (If your theology doesn’t become your biography, what good is it?)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

The prosecutions must begin soon.


5 posted on 02/18/2025 1:17:47 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum (The worst thing about censorship is █████ ██ ████ ████ ████ █ ███████ ████. FJB.)
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To: gitmo

Yes. It got convoluted by the legacy media.


6 posted on 02/18/2025 1:18:16 PM PST by madison10
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To: madison10

You mean it was intentionally lied about in the LSM and they ended up believing their open lies and now it is boomeranging back to them.


7 posted on 02/18/2025 1:20:15 PM PST by Skwor
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
This bursts the LAAP-dog media's attempts to paint Musk as a boogeyman.

I've been posting the actual EO that says that Musk is in a coordination role reporting to the Chief-of-Staff Susie Wiles.

The DOGE team report to the respective Department heads where they're assigned.

-PJ

8 posted on 02/18/2025 1:20:29 PM PST by Political Junkie Too ( * LAAP = Left-wing Activist Agitprop Press (formerly known as the MSM))
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

I can just hear the liberals going “But, but, but”.. and then letting out a huge blood curdling scream and throwing a temper tantrum.


9 posted on 02/18/2025 1:20:46 PM PST by hoagy62 (Hail Trump! Trump won! By a lot!)
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To: Skwor

That would be it


10 posted on 02/18/2025 1:21:10 PM PST by madison10
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To: madison10

Some people hate transparency and/or the results of an audit. I wonder what they are hiding?


11 posted on 02/18/2025 1:23:38 PM PST by ActresponsiblyinVA
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To: madison10

Some people hate transparency and/or the results of an audit. I wonder what they are hiding?


12 posted on 02/18/2025 1:23:38 PM PST by ActresponsiblyinVA
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

That is rich!


13 posted on 02/18/2025 1:27:00 PM PST by madison10
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Musk don’t need no stinkin’ job nor no stinkin’ official title.

Musk got more FU than anybody on Planet Earth.

But the best thing is, he ain’t looking to make new friends.

But he does love make new enemies.

Perfect job for the guy who neither wants nor needs a job which is not really job that he is ever going to get.

The paradox is that he is doing a helluva a job doing the job he really doesn’t have.

That is called checkmate in 4D chess.


14 posted on 02/18/2025 1:27:55 PM PST by Biblebelter
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To: E. Pluribus Unum

The prosecutions must begin soon.
———————————————————————————

Prosecutions for what? Musk has so far produced only claims, not evidence.


15 posted on 02/18/2025 1:36:35 PM PST by Bob Wills is still the king (Just a Texas Playboy at heart!)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

I KNEW THAT ALL ALONG


16 posted on 02/18/2025 1:37:12 PM PST by ridesthemiles (not giving up on TRUMP---EVER)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Elon works for Trump..he does not get paid(He’s doing this because he wants to help fix America!) everyone working for Trump is hired BY TRUMP..so this nonsense that “Well Elon was not elected” well, no one in Trump’s cabinet was elected, they were HIRED, they work for Trump so suck on it


17 posted on 02/18/2025 1:37:58 PM PST by Sarah Barracuda
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

I actually agree that Elon Musk does not have the authority to decide whether an agency or department is closed down. His job is to uncover waste, fraud and corruption and report the findings to Trump and to the public. He may recommend what to do with the agencies but the decision should be by Trump or Congress.


18 posted on 02/18/2025 1:39:43 PM PST by paudio (NEW MATH: 45=47)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Okay, someone please explain this to me like I’m five years old.

A lawsuit by—democrats(?)—is saying Musk has no job and therefore can’t make any decisions on his own. That he is just an adviser to the President, like Antifa Dunn was to Biden.

Still, couldn’t Musk just advise Trump to do stuff, including firing, hiring, stopping fraud, waste, abuse, etc.? Can’t I send a letter to the president advising on things he should do? Is that illegal? In the very small chance he reads my letter and does what I advise is that illegal?

What specifically is it in their lawsuit that they demand Musk not do or do?

Are they specifying things they think he’s doing but in reality others are actually doing?

Because that’s what’s actually happening. The idea that Musk is running rampant through the government without authority is simply false.

How can a judge stop a thing that is NOT happening?


19 posted on 02/18/2025 1:40:01 PM PST by Alas Babylon! (Repeal the Patriot Act; Abolish the DHS; reform FBI top to bottom!)
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To: Bob Wills is still the king
Prosecutions for what? Musk has so far produced only claims, not evidence.

It's been four weeks and no prosecutions?

Obviously DOGE is a failure.

Time to move on and forget about it.

20 posted on 02/18/2025 1:42:22 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum (The worst thing about censorship is █████ ██ ████ ████ ████ █ ███████ ████. FJB.)
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