Supreme Court keeps DOGE records under wraps
Kelsey Reichmann
WASHINGTON (CN) — The Supreme Court blocked discovery into President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency on Friday, keeping records about controversial cost-cutting operations out of the hands of an ethics watchdog.
In an apparent 6-3 ruling, the justices paused an appeals court ruling granting limited discovery into DOGE’s records. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.
Unlike other emergency appeals, the justices also overturned the D.C. Circuit’s ruling and called for a new review that further limits what information the government can be forced to share.
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, or CREW, wants to shed light on DOGE’s structure and operations. The group filed a Freedom of Information Act request in January and sued after the request was ignored.
A federal judge granted limited discovery, forcing DOGE to give the watchdog group information on personnel and some communications. The court also ordered DOGE Administrator Amy Gleason to be available for a deposition.
Trump transformed the U.S. Digital Service, a technology unit within the executive office, into the U.S. DOGE Service through an executive order. With the help of billionaire Elon Musk, DOGE then moved to slash government programs and carry out mass layoffs of federal employees.
DOGE’s work has led to a plethora of lawsuits against the administration. The Supreme Court has already ruled on some of them, ranging from foreign aid funding and education grants to the termination of federal officials.
The Trump administration argues DOGE isn’t subject to FOIA requests since it's not a real agency but rather a presidential advisory body within the executive office. Certain presidential advisers are exempt from requests for information so they can provide confidential advice to the president.
Lower courts rejected this argument, instead viewing DOGE as a regular federal agency and therefore subject to records requests. Chief Justice John Roberts, a George W. Bush appointee, temporarily paused discovery ahead of a May 27 deadline.
Trump dismissed the ethics watchdog's request as a fishing expedition in an emergency appeal at the high court.
“Forcing advisory bodies to disclose their communications and other documents in discovery triggers the very concerns that Congress sought to avoid by excluding presidential advisory bodies from FOIA’s reach,” U.S Solicitor General John Sauer wrote.
The lower court judge acknowledged some concerns about presidential privilege in the release of communications between DOGE and the White House. The discovery order does not apply to these records.
CREW said that allowing Trump to insulate DOGE would give the administration free rein to avoid transparency and would "turn FOIA on its head."