"Judges aren't allowed to control the executive's
legitimate power," Vance wrote on X, in a statement on Sunday.
His remarks came less than 24 hours after a federal judge
barred members of the Trump administration’s newly formed advisory group, the
Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), from accessing sensitive Treasury
Department systems.
The Trump administration, which is pushing for sweeping
changes to the federal government, is facing over two dozen lawsuits that
threaten to derail its efforts. In just three weeks, Trump has signed dozens of
executive orders, many of which Democrats argue exceed his constitutional
authority. Several of these orders have been temporarily blocked by federal
judges in response to legal challenges.
Speaking on ABC, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy described
Trump’s aggressive cost-cutting measures—particularly targeting the U.S. Agency
for International Development (USAID)—as "the most serious constitutional
crisis the country has faced, certainly since Watergate."
On Saturday, a judge sided with 19 state attorneys general
who sued the administration, blocking Doge personnel—led by tech billionaire
Elon Musk—from accessing Treasury payment systems and Americans’ personal
financial data.
Trump, en route to the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Sunday,
denounced the ruling as a "disgrace," according to the New York
Times.
Musk, who was appointed by Trump to lead Doge in cutting
what he calls "wasteful government spending," criticized the court’s
decision. "How on Earth are we supposed to stop fraud and waste of
taxpayer money without looking at how money is spent?" he wrote on X,
calling the ruling "insane."
Vance, in his social media post, argued that certain
executive decisions should be beyond judicial review. "If a judge tried to
tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be
illegal," he wrote. "If a judge tried to dictate how the attorney
general uses prosecutorial discretion, that's also illegal."
Former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney, a vocal Trump
critic, fired back at Vance. "If you believe any of the multiple federal
courts that have ruled against you so far are exceeding their statutory or
constitutional authority, your recourse is to appeal," she wrote on X.
"You don't get to rage-quit the Republic just because you are losing.
That's tyranny."
The lawsuit against Doge’s Treasury access, filed in federal
court in New York City, accuses the Trump administration of unlawfully granting
Musk’s team entry to the department’s central payment system. The system
manages tax refunds, Social Security benefits, and an extensive database of
Americans’ personal and financial information.
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