A pillar of environmental enforcement is targeted by Trump and Musk's AI company

The briefing

Right-leaning legal activists and Elon Musk's xAI are challenging citizen suits, the decades-old right of private groups and local governments to sue over violations of major federal laws. Backed by the Trump administration, they argue the Constitution reserves enforcement power for the president and federal agencies. Environmentalists say losing the tool would be devastating, noting citizen suits extracted millions from polluting oil and gas operations and forced lead pipe removal in Flint, Michigan.