Trump presses SCOTUS to help keep DOGE under wraps 

WASHINGTON (CN) — President Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to prevent the public from seeing information about cuts recommended by the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency.

The White House warned that without the justices’ immediate intervention, a court would force DOGE to comply with a fishing expedition into sensitive executive-branch functions by an ethics watchdog organization.

“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, referencing Freedom of Information Act requests for documents.

Trump transformed the U.S. Digital Service, a technology unit in the executive office, into the U.S. DOGE Service through an executive order.

With the help of billionaire Elon Musk, DOGE launched an audit of broad swaths of the executive branch in the opening months of Trump’s second term. The group has moved to slash government programs and execute 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 issues regarding foreign aid funding, education grants and the termination of federal officials.

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, CREW, filed a FOIA request in January for financial disclosures or ethics pledges for DOGE personnel. When their request went unanswered, the group sued the administration to get documents before lawmakers passed a government funding bill.

Lower courts granted CREW’s request for discovery, forcing DOGE to identify each federal agency contract, grant or lease that any DOGE member recommended be cancelled, and each federal agency employee that DOGE employees recommended be fired. DOGE would have to provide information on its personnel and share which government databases it has accessed.

DOGE’s head, Administrator Amy Gleason, would also have to sit for a deposition.

The Trump administration argued that DOGE isn’t subject to FOIA because it is a presidential advisory body within the executive office. Certain presidential advisers are exempt from FOIA so they can provide confidential advice to the president.

The lower courts, however, rejected this argument, treating DOGE like an agency and therefore subject to requests. Trump said DOGE’s classification is still disputed, and allowing discovery to go ahead would give CREW an end-run around FOIA limits.

“Nullifying FOIA’s solicitude for presidential advisers and ordering roving discovery into their recommendations and advice represents an untenable affront to the separation of powers,” Sauer wrote.

A D.C. court ordered DOGE to respond to discovery requests by May 27, provide the requested records by June 3 and make Gleason available for a deposition by June 13.

CREW said it would make the case that the Supreme Court should follow the lower court’s example.

“While DOGE continues to attempt to fight transparency at every level of justice, we look forward to making our case that the Supreme Court should join the District Court and Court of Appeals in allowing discovery to go forward,” the group said in an email.

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