By Andrew Chung
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court temporarily suspended its judicial order on Friday, demanding that the government efficiency department established by President Donald Trump and led by its billionaire adviser Elon Musk, answered its business in the coming days and weeks.
The court filed an order from Washington-based U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper to respond to information requests from a group of government regulators after a ruling that could be government agencies covered by the Federal Freedom of Information Act.
The Supreme Court lawsuit is called the Executive Stay, which gives the extra time to consider the Department of Justice’s formal request to block Cooper’s order while the lawsuit is carried out in the lower court.
Washington (CREW) liability and ethical citizens filed a lawsuit seeking a range of records through Foia regulations, which allows the public to seek access to records produced by government agencies.
The group sought information on Doge's role in mass shooting and cut federal plans after the Republican president returned to office in January.
The Trump administration believes that Duger is a consulting entity and is not subject to the FOIA. In response, the crew sought information to determine whether Doge was bound by FOIA because it had authority independent of the president's agency.
Cooper ruled in April that Dooger had to hand over some records sought by the crew and was entitled to ask questions in his testimony. The federal court of appeals refused to put Cooper's order on hold on May 14.
The government urged the Supreme Court to take action, saying the judge's orders trespassed the executive branch's power and undermined the ability of numerous advisers to provide candid, confidential advice to the president.
Cooper said in one of his decisions, Duger's actions were marked by “unusual confidentiality.” On the other hand, Trump's language about Mano's execution orders showed that it was “exercising substantive independent authority.”
(Reported by Andrew Chung; Other reports by John Kruzel; Editors by Will Dunham and Daniel Wallis)
