John,

I’m glad to be catching up with you. It’s been a busy week here at CREW — in case you missed the news, we’re suing DOGE.

This is important work so I wanted to walk you through our case, point by point. But if you don’t have time to read this entire email, make sure you read this: federal law has clear requirements for advisory committees like DOGE, which they have not adhered to.

The Federal Advisory Committee Act, known as FACA, requires that groups like DOGE adhere to certain requirements in order to prevent the rich and powerful from exerting unchecked influence over the government.

Advisory committees, such as DOGE, are required to follow a specific authorization process, include a balanced membership, have a clear charter including the scope of the committee’s activities, have meetings open to the public and disclose records to the public.

DOGE violated these requirements. Trump's executive order moving DOGE within the Executive Office of the President does not change the fact that DOGE skirted critical transparency requirements during the transition. And there remain many questions about the extent to which private actors outside the government are working with DOGE in secret, without public scrutiny.

In fact, making DOGE at least in part a government entity raises new questions about Elon Musk’s access to sensitive information and potential conflicts of interest.

We could not stand back and allow DOGE to evade accountability. That’s why we took them to court. But DOGE is being run by the richest man in the world, and that’s just one reason why this lawsuit will be an uphill battle.

Thank you so much. We’re glad to have you standing with us,

Noah Bookbinder
President
CREW