Democratic attorneys general in several states vowed Thursday to file a lawsuit to stop Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency's from accessing federal payment systems
A dozen attorneys general, including New York's Letitia James, said in a statement that they were taking action 鈥渋n defense of our Constitution, our right to privacy, and the essential funding that individuals and communities nationwide are counting on."
鈥淎s the richest man in the world, Elon Musk is not used to being told 鈥榥o,鈥� 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 鈥渞ead only鈥� 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鈥檚 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, Vermont.
Dave Collins, The Associated Press
