- Union groups allege ‘unlawful ongoing’ data disclosure
- Musk was picked by Trump to modernize government, cut spending
The
Union groups, which are affiliates of the
Trump has explained that Musk, the
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According to the lawsuit, Treasury is involved in an “unlawful ongoing, systematic, and continuous disclosure of personal and financial information” to Musk’s team. “The scale of the intrusion into individuals’ privacy is massive and unprecedented,” the groups said.
Neither a press representative for Treasury nor a DOGE representative immediately responded to emailed requests for comment. The Alliance for Retired Americans, the American Federation of Government Employees and Service Employees International Union are represented by lawyers from Public Citizen Litigation Group and State Democracy Defenders Fund.
The lawsuit cited reports that Bessent granted the DOGE team access to the federal payment system last week after a senior career official at the department
Musk’s effort to obtain information has encountered resistance from civil servants. Staff at the US Agency for International Development were put on administrative leave after trying to block DOGE staff from accessing classified information. The newly appointed interim US attorney for the District of Columbia has
The White House confirmed Monday that Musk is what’s known as an SGE, or special government employee. An SGE is an officer or employee in the executive branch of the federal government who typically serves for a limited period of time.
“Elon Musk is selflessly serving President Trump’s Administration as a special government employee, and he has abided by all applicable federal laws,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.
The case is Alliance for Retired Americans v. Bessent,
(Updates with names of union groups in fifth paragraph. A previous version of the story corrected the relationship of union groups to the AFL-CIO as affiliates.)
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Steve Stroth, Peter Blumberg
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