Musk's USAID cuts likely not constitutional

NEW YORK, Mar 19 (Reuters): A federal judge on Tuesday blocked billionaire Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency from taking any more steps to shut down the US Agency for International Development, saying their efforts to close the foreign aid agency likely violated the US Constitution.

In a preliminary ruling, US District Judge Theodore Chuang in Maryland ordered Musk, a key adviser to President Donald Trump, and the agency Musk spearheads to restore access to USAID's computer systems for its direct and contract employees, including thousands who were placed on leave.

The ruling came in response to a lawsuit by current and former USAID employees, one of several currently pending over the rapid dismantling of Washington's primary humanitarian aid agency.

"Today's decision is an important victory against Elon Musk and his DOGE attack on USAID, the US government and the Constitution," said Norm Eisen, executive chair of State Democracy Defenders Fund, a lawyer representing the 26 anonymous plaintiffs in the case.