J6 Judge Tanya Chutkan set to rule on DOGE mass layoffs, data access

US District Judge Tanya Chutkan appeared inclined to deny an emergency request to temporarily block the Department of Government Efficiency, headed by Elon Musk, from firing federal employees or accessing sensitive records during an emergency hearing that took place on the Monday holiday.

Chutkan said after the nearly one-hour-long virtual hearing that she would issue a ruling within 24 hours as to whether she would grant a request brought forth by 14 state attorneys general to issue a temporary restraining order blocking DOGE from accessing data from the Departments of Education, Labor, Health and Human Services, Energy, Transportation, Commerce, and Office of Personnel Management and from firing employees, ABC News reported.

On Thursday, the 14 states filed their lawsuit alleging that Musk’s "expansive authority" violated the Appointments Clause of the US Constitution. That clause calls for anyone deemed a "principal officer" of the federal government to be formally nominated by the president and go through a Senate confirmation process.

Chutkan described the states’ request for a restraining order as "prophylactic" and was reportedly skeptical about issuing a far-reaching order. The outlet reported that the "plaintiffs struggled to prove a concrete harm stemming from DOGE's conduct."

Chutkan said, "The court can't act based on the media reports. We can't do that. The things that I'm hearing are concerning indeed and troubling indeed, but I have to have a record, and I have to make a finding the facts before I issue something."

Chutkan said that for a temporary restraining order to be issued, the states need to prove a threat of "extreme" and "imminent harm" that "can’t be undone." While having to "scramble to rehire" employees that were laid off would be challenging, it could be done, she said.

Speaking on the harms the states claimed, Chutkan said, "I'm not seeing it so far."

Chutkan also questioned why attorneys with the Trump administration had few details about the conduct of DOGE, including the number of firings to date across the federal government. "The firing of thousands of federal employees is not a small or common thing. You haven't been able to confirm that? I think it will be very relevant to me to know whether thousands of federal employees have been terminated on Friday."

Chutkan also said that DOGE"s "unpredictable and scattershot" tactics made it harder for the attorneys general to prove immediate, concrete harms, but acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations the suit alleged.

"DOGE appears to be moving in no sort of predictable and orderly fashion," Chutkan said. "This is essentially a private citizen directing an organization that's not a federal agency to have access to the entire workings of the federal government, fire, hire, slash, contract, terminate programs, all without apparently any congressional oversight."

This is one of at least 73 suits brought forth against Trump’s executive actions brought forth since he first took office. Many have resulted in temporary restraining orders.