Trump and Musk challenge government power balance, facing legal and political risks

According to The Washington Post, US President Trump and billionaire Elon Musk took unprecedented actions during the first three weeks of their second term, weakening federal agency power, suspending or canceling billions of dollars in authorized spending, and cutting tens of thousands of federal employees, triggering over 50 legal lawsuits. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) led by Musk has intervened in the operations of 18 federal agencies, attempting to terminate 199 government contracts and push for a $1 trillion reduction in the federal budget. The White House spokesperson stated that the court's obstruction of Trump's executive order is an "abuse" of the law. But legal experts warn that if the government openly ignores court rulings, the United States may face a constitutional crisis. Supporters of Trump believe that these measures are correcting the excessive expansion of federal agency power, while Democrats and some legal professionals believe that this marks an extreme expansion of executive power that could undermine the constitutional order of the United States.