U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan Refused to Issue Restraining Order Against Musk or DOGE, After Calling Unusual Holiday Hearing

Sundance reporting for CTH 

The background here is interesting.  Late Sunday night, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan called for an unusual hearing on a federal holiday to hear the arguments of 14 states who are seeking a temporary restraining order (TRO) against Elon Musk and the Dept of Govt Efficiency (DOGE).

It’s interesting because Judge Chutkan called for the hearing Monday (Presidents Day) just 45 minutes after Trump’s U.S Solicitor General asked the Supreme Court to intervene on the matter of judicial TRO’s issued against President Trump’s Title II authority.  Last night in another case, Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris filed an “APPLICATION TO VACATE THE ORDER ISSUED BY THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND REQUEST FOR AN IMMEDIATE ADMINISTRATIVE STAY” with the Supreme Court. [pdf HERE] 45 minutes later Chutkan called for today’s TRO hearing.

District Judge Chutkan refused to issue the TRO today, saying she would take up the matter later.

(Via Politico) – […] the judge said granting the temporary restraining order sought as part of a lawsuit brought by Democratic attorneys general required much clearer evidence that DOGE’s actions were causing grave, permanent damage. Instead, she said, states had relied primarily on news reports that speculated about the risks of Musk and DOGE’s actions, some of which she said could potentially be remedied in further litigation.

“I’m not seeing it so far. … It’s sort of like a prophylactic TRO and that’s not allowed,” Chutkan said, adding that she hoped to issue a ruling within 24 hours. “The courts can’t act based on media reports. We can’t do that.” 

[…]  Chutkan’s skepticism of their position follows another judge’s rejection of a restraining order on DOGE’s efforts to access databases within a handful of federal departments. Chutkan repeatedly cited the decision by U.S. District Judge John Bates as she noted her skepticism. (more)

Over the weekend, the Trump administration, in the application to the Supreme Court, outlined the series of Lawfare tactics the president has faced, telling the high court that lower court rulings “irreparably harm the Presidency by curtailing the President’s ability to manage the Executive Branch in the earliest days of his Administration.”

“The district court’s order exemplifies a broader, weeks-long trend in which plaintiffs challenging President Trump’s initiatives have persuaded district courts to issue TROs that intrude upon a host of the President’s Article II powers,” wrote Solicitor General Sarah Harris.

Judge John Bates support for President Trump, ruling discussion on CTH HERE.

Judge Gregory Katsas support for President Trump, ruling discussion on CTH HERE.