The lawsuit, brought by three federal worker unions, argued that Musk’s offer violated the Administrative Procedure Act and that the Office of Personnel Management had exceeded its authority in proposing to write checks that Congress had not yet accounted for, in violation of the Constitution’s appropriations clause.

The judge also ordered Musk and his team to “immediately destroy any and all copies of material downloaded from Treasury Department’s records and systems, if any.”

The order requires those who have accessed payment records without proper security clearance to destroy them.

President Trump and Elon Musk have spent three weeks slashing federal jobs — often in defiance of legal limits — and there are more to come. These are the reported cuts to date.

The broadside against the court order signals tensions ahead between the White House and the judiciary.

President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s government efficiency team scored a win in court after a judge cleared the way for an unprecedented buyout offer to millions of federal employees despite a lawsuit by labor unions.

President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk's plan to reshape the federal government is entering a new phase after a judge lifted a temporary freeze on their federal employee buyout program. Meanwhile,