The resistance to President Trump’s agenda began just minutes after he took the oath of office. As Trump was in the Capitol Rotunda for his inaugural ceremony, critics already were busy filing a flurry of lawsuits taking aim at several of his priorities.

The Department of Government Efficiency, an advisory board which is not an official government agency and will be tasked with cutting government waste, was the focus of three lawsuits filed on Monday. 

Trump originally tapped Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who are not official members of the federal government, to run the board, and the two men have said they want to slash $2 trillion from the federal government. However, on Monday, a spokeswoman for the committee, Anna Kelly, said Mr. Ramaswamy will not be a part of the venture because he intends to run for elected office “which requires him to remain outside of DOGE.”

One lawsuit was led by the left-wing consumer watchdog group Public Citizen, another lawsuit was led by the American Public Health Association, and another by the National Security Counselors on behalf of two plaintiffs who say they represent the interests of federal employees. Other groups, such as a union representing thousands of federal employees, joined the lawsuits as well. 

The lawsuits allege that DOGE violates the Federal Advisory Committee Act, which lays out various requirements for advisory boards, such as the inclusion of a charter, balanced membership, and a federal officer to initiate meetings.

The National Security Counselor’s lawsuit states, “DOGE’s stacked membership, far from being fairly balanced, reveals that only one viewpoint is represented: that of ‘small-government crusaders’ with backgrounds in either the tech industry or Republican politics. This shortcoming renders DOGE’s membership imbalanced and unfit for the function it has been directed to perform.”

Meanwhile, the Public Citizen lawsuit insists that a portion of DOGE violates a part of the advisory committee law designed to prevent advisory boards from “turning into vehicles for advancing private interests in the federal decision-making process.”

The ACLU also said it plans to file a lawsuit against Trump’s anticipated executive order designed to end birthright citizenship for children of people who are in the country illegally. The head of the National Immigration Law Center, Kica Matos, ​​ told the Bulwark that the ACLU is planning to sue over the birthright citizenship order. 

“This move is an example of the new administration’s lack of regard for the constitution. Attempting to repeal birthright citizenship via executive order is both absurd and unconstitutional,” Ms. Matos said. 

The Fourteenth Amendment states that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” However, Trump is expected to direct federal agencies to interpret that amendment to exclude the children of illegal migrants. 

The legal challenges coming minutes after Trump was sworn in highlight a taste of some of the hurdles the 47th president will face in his second term. A poll conducted by the Napolitan Institute found that 42 percent of federal government employees who earn more than $75,000 a year said they plan to resist Trump. Meanwhile, 80 percent of federal employees who earn that much and voted for Vice President Harris said they plan to resist the new administration.