又中又英｜Plethora of lawsuits

US President Donald Trump’s decision to appoint Elon Musk as the head of an agency to cut government spending has led to a plethora of lawsuits. Musk, the world’s richest man, was put in charge of the unofficial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). He moved quickly to overhaul the federal government by firing thousands of workers and shutting down or downsizing many departments. Critics and some of those affected by his downsizing filed a plethora of lawsuits. The word “plethora” means a large amount of something, sometimes more than what is needed. A plethora of lawsuits means a lot of lawsuits.

Even those not directly affected by Musk’s actions have filed lawsuits against him and DOGE, including top law officials from more than a dozen US states. They are challenging his access to sensitive government data, such as full details of taxpayers. Critics of Musk say DOGE does not have the power of the purse to cut government spending. The power of the purse refers to the power to control government spending and how the money is spent. The US Constitution makes clear Congress, particularly the House of Representatives, has the power of the purse.

The House of Representatives decides how much money should be spent and the budget for government departments. The Senate can have an input. Both sides must then pass an identical spending bill for the president to sign. The president does not have the power of the purse. Critics of Musk say this means DOGE does not have the power to cut spending already approved by Congress. It should be interesting to see how judges decide on the upcoming court battles!

美國總統唐納德‧特朗普任命伊隆‧馬斯克，成為一個組織的領軍，去削減政府開支，這一決定帶來了極多的訴訟（plethora of lawsuits）。世界首富馬斯克給委託負責非官方的政府效率部（DOGE）。他迅速全面整頓聯邦政府，炒掉數以千計的僱員，以及關閉或精簡許多的部門。批評者以及一些受他精簡而影響的人，提出極多的訴訟（plethora of lawsuits）。 Plethora是指大量的某事物，有時是過多或過剩，超出所需要的；a plethora of lawsuits就是許多的訴訟。

即使那些不是直接受馬斯克決定所影響的人，包括超過十二個美國州分的檢察官，也入稟法院控告他和DOGE。他們質疑他為何能獲取敏感的政府數據，例如納稅人的詳細資料。馬斯克的批評者則說，DOGE並沒有「看守荷包之權」（ the power of the purse）去削減政府開支。The power of the purse是指控制政府開銷以及如何花錢的財政大權。美國憲法清楚定明，國會特別是眾議院，擁有撥款的財政大權（the power of the purse）。

眾議院可以決定如何使用金錢，以及各個政府部門的財政預算。參議院也可以審議。兩院必須通過同一法案，提交總統簽署。總統並沒有看守荷包的財政大權（the power of the purse）。馬斯克的批評者說，這意味着DOGE並沒有權力去削減已獲國會批准的開支。這就得看法官們在將要上演的法庭戰上要怎樣判決，可精采了！

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Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻