By DAVE COLLINS
Democratic attorneys general in several states vowed Thursday to file a lawsuit to stop Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from accessing federal payment systems containing Americans’ sensitive personal information.
A dozen attorneys general, including New York’s Letitia James, said in a statement that they were taking action “in defense of our Constitution, our right to privacy, and the essential funding that individuals and communities nationwide are counting on.”
“As the richest man in the world, Elon Musk is not used to being told ‘no,’ but in our country, no one is above the law,” the statement said. “The President does not have the power to give away our private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday afternoon.
Government officials and labor unions have been among those raising concerns about DOGE’s involvement with the payment system for the federal government, saying it could lead to security risks or missed payments for programs such as Social Security and Medicare.
Also Thursday, a federal judge ordered that two Musk allies have “read only” access to Treasury Department payment systems, but no one else will get access for now, including Musk himself. The ruling comes in a lawsuit filed by federal workers unions trying to stop the billionaire’s DOGE from following through on what they call a massive privacy invasion.
It was not immediate clear when the Democratic attorneys general will file their lawsuit.
Joining James in the statement were the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Rhode Island and Vermont.
President Donald Trump tapped Musk, the world’s richest man, to shrink the size of the U.S. government.
Democrats have criticized the tech billionaire’s maneuvers, which include the hostile seizure of taxpayer data and the apparent closure of the government’s leading international humanitarian aid agency.
DOGE recently has gained access to sensitive payment data within the Treasury Department. It came after Treasury’s acting Deputy Secretary David Lebryk resigned under pressure after more than 30 years of service. The Washington Post reported that Lebryk resigned after Musk and DOGE requested access to sensitive Treasury data.
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