Massachusetts, New Mexico, Arizona, Michigan, California, Connecticut among states filing lawsuit challenging power of Elon Musk

BOSTON – Today, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, along with 12 other Attorneys General, announced the filing of a lawsuit challenging the exercise of executive power by Elon Musk. The lawsuit argues that President Trump has violated the United States Constitution by creating a new federal Department without Congressional approval and by granting Musk sweeping powers over the entire federal government without seeking the advice and consent of the Senate.  

“The President cannot create a new department to restructure the federal government and certainly cannot give unchecked power to a billionaire friend without Congressional action,” said AG Campbell. “Our lawsuit seeks to put an end to the ongoing corruption and abuse of power at DOGE that threatens funding for crucial needs such as healthcare, education, and more.” 

The lawsuit accuses Musk of unraveling federal agencies, accessing sensitive data, and causing widespread disruption for state and local governments and the American people. The complaint further asserts that Musk’s actions violate the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which ensures that executive appointments are subject to Senate confirmation and that those nominated are required to make robust and public financial disclosures to prevent conflicts of interest.   

AG Campbell seeks a court ruling declaring Musk’s actions unconstitutional and an injunction barring him from issuing orders to any person in the Executive Branch outside of DOGE, as well as invalidating his previous actions.  

Joining AG Campbell in filing this lawsuit, which was led by the New Mexico Department of Justice and the attorneys general of Arizona and Michigan, are the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Hawai’i, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Vermont.