Oh, I love it when this happens. There are times when it’s such a delight, and privilege, to be an attorney watching all these court orders come down.

From the Court Order, get those sites back up TODAY!!:

Here’s the Order and Memorandum:

And Doctors for America Complaint and Memorandum of Support of TRO:

Above is the January 31, 2025 hearing on the Court’s youtube (how cool is that).

ANOTHER UPDATE: Trump Administration continues to withhold funding, and Plaintiffs have requested enforcement. I’d sure like to see a Contempt of Court Order handed down:

UPDATE: From Democracy Docket:

Another Judge Halts Trump’s Federal Funding Freeze

Here are the pleadings in the Rhode Island case — and waiting on the youtube from this morning’s hearing:

And another Order comes down limiting DOGE, this time in its efforts to get rid of USAID by putting employees on administrative leave and shutting them out of the USAID system, forcing “expedited evacuations” on them, and of course, the USAID funding freeze.

Musketeers lose again. Here’s the Order:

Bottom line?

DOGE/Musk get good swift kick

February 9th, 2025

Minnesota was one of the states that sued over DOGE’s access to Treasury, accessing Treasury information, and doing who knows what with it. It started with a request for an Emergency Temporary Restraining Order that was filed Friday, February 7, 2025. For a succinct statement of the facts in support of this TRO request, see pages 41-46:

And on Saturday, wasting no time, the Court Ordered that DOGE come to a screeching halt — that is if they obey the Order (and if not, bring on the sanctions, bring on contempt of court:

It’s a delightfully simple and straightforward Order, essentially:

[T]he defendants are (i) restrained from granting access to any Treasury Department payment record, payment systems, or any other data systems maintained by the Treasury Department containing personally identifiable information and/or confidential financial information of payees, other than to civil servants with a need for access to perform their job duties within the Bureau of Fiscal Services who have passed all background checks and security clearances and taken all information security training called for in federal statutes and Treasury Department regulations; (ii) restrained from granting access to all political appointees, special government employees, and government employees detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department, to any Treasury Department payment record, payment systems, or any other data systems maintained by the Treasury Department containing personally identifiable information and/or confidential financial information of payees; and (iii) ordered to direct any person prohibited above from having access to such information, records and systems but who has had access to such information, records, and systems since January 20, 2025, to immediately destroy any and all copies of material downloaded from the Treasury Department’s records and systems, if any…

To which Musk responds:

Right…

Today’s list of “Presidential Actions” includes (emphasis added):

Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa

Egregious is an apt description of this “Executive Order,” and an apt description of a policy that the U.S. “shall not provide aid or assistance to South Africa” and to “prioritize”resettlement of Afrikaner refugees” — right.

Why South Africa? Well, DOH! MUSK, eh?

And “humanitarian relief,” “resettlement,” how would that work? Give them one of the 50 states and the state’s treasury as compensation?

The one Africaner I knew left the U.S. because when confronted with having to work for a living, found that “life was too hard.” Well, this from someone so extremely privileged, not too surprising, but I’d be curious how ANY Afrikaner “refugees” would fare. And what all would they take from the country and bring over here? Would that be balanced with what they have to determine what sort of assistance the would receive, what sort of assistance would they deserve? Who would make that determination? It’s not like they’d arrive here with only a backpack with some clothes, sustenance, a water bottle, and a phone. And note, assistance is for “Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.” UNJUST! In this context, what is unjust?

Here it is (emphasis in bold):

Addressing Egregious Actions of the Republic of South Africa

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows:

     Section 1.Purpose.  In shocking disregard of its citizens’ rights, the Republic of South Africa (South Africa) recently enacted Expropriation Act 13 of 2024 (Act), to enable the government of South Africa to seize ethnic minority Afrikaners’ agricultural property without compensation.  This Act follows countless government policies designed to dismantle equal opportunity in employment, education, and business, and hateful rhetoric and government actions fueling disproportionate violence against racially disfavored landowners.

In addition, South Africa has taken aggressive positions towards the United States and its allies, including accusing Israel, not Hamas, of genocide in the International Court of Justice, and reinvigorating its relations with Iran to develop commercial, military, and nuclear arrangements.  

     The United States cannot support the government of South Africa’s commission of rights violations in its country or its ‘undermining United States foreign policy, which poses national security threats to our Nation, our allies, our African partners, and our interests.

     Sec. 2.Policy.  It is the policy of the United States that, as long as South Africa continues these unjust and immoral practices that harm our Nation:
          (a)  the United States shall not provide aid or assistance to South Africa; and
          (b)  the United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.

     Sec. 3.  Assistance.  (a)  All executive departments and agencies (agencies), including the United States Agency for International Development, shall, to the maximum extent allowed by law, halt foreign aid or assistance delivered or provided to South Africa, and shall promptly exercise all available authorities and discretion to halt such aid or assistance.
          (b)  The head of each agency may permit the provision of any such foreign aid or assistance that, in the discretion of the relevant agency head, is necessary or appropriate. 

     Sec. 4.  Refugee Resettlement and Other Humanitarian Considerations.  The Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security shall take appropriate steps, consistent with law, to prioritize humanitarian relief, including admission and resettlement through the United States Refugee Admissions Program, for Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination.  Such plan shall be submitted to the President through the Assistant to the President and Homeland Security Advisor.

     Sec. 5.  General Provisions.  (a)  Nothing in this order shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect: 
          (i)   the authority granted by law to an executive department or agency, or the head thereof; or 
          (ii)  the functions of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, administrative, or legislative proposals. 
     (b)  This order shall be implemented consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations. 
     (c)  This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.