‘We Won’: Federal Judge Blocks Elon Musk’s Access To Treasury Data After NY AG Letitia James Takes Aim
A federal judge on Saturday blocked Elon Musk’s DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) from accessing private data with the Treasury Department.
Musk’s DOGE has been working to cut trillions in government funding, but critics and lawmakers have raised red flags about Musk and his team of unelected officials having access to data that contains Social Security numbers and banking information.
U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer wrote in his order that Musk and his team must “destroy any and all copies of material downloaded from the Treasury Department’s records and systems, if any.”
Engelmayer’s order blocks President Donald Trump’s administration from giving access to sensitive data to those deemed special government employees, which is how the White House has described Musk’s role in the administration. The Treasury Department put a new policy in place this month to allow access to private data to special government employees.
A hearing is set on the matter for Feb. 14.
The ruling followed more than a dozen state attoneys general filing suit over Musk’s access to data.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, celebrated the new order after filing suit herself.
“This morning, we won a court order blocking Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, from accessing Americans’ private data. Musk and his DOGE employees must destroy all records they’ve obtained,” she wrote on X. “I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: no one is above the law.
James argued Trump and Musk do not have the right to hand out access to private information or to cut congressionally approved funding.
“President Trump does not have the power to give away Americans’ private information to anyone he chooses, and he cannot cut federal payments approved by Congress,” she wrote after announcing the original lawsuit on Friday. “Musk and DOGE have no authority to access Americans’ private information and some of our country’s most sensitive data. I am taking action to keep our information secure, and to prevent any unconstitutional freeze on essential funding that Americans rely on every day.”
Watch above via Fox News.
