Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency are running into legal problems left and right as federal judges across the country are placing holds on some of his most important objectives, including the multi-billion dollar federal funding freeze, his buyout offer for federal employees, and his suspension of thousands of employees at the U.S. Agency for International Development. 

Mr. Musk’s role in trying to downsize the federal government has been heralded as much-needed by congressional Republicans, and President Trump has done nothing, so far, to curb his influence. At a recent press conference alongside the prime minister of Japan, Mr. Trump said the DOGE chief will only head to agencies with explicit permission, but did not say if there are any entities that are off-limits.