Federal Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander has just put the brakes on Elon Musk’s efforts to scrutinize Social Security records through Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Could this judicial intervention be another example of the administrative state fighting back against Trump’s promise to drain the swamp? It looks like it to us…
At a glance:
• Federal judge blocks Elon Musk-linked DOGE team from accessing Americans’ private Social Security data
• Judge ordered deletion of all non-anonymized personal information accessed since January 20
• DOGE was investigating fraud and waste at Social Security Administration under President Trump
• White House criticized ruling as “another activist judge” sabotaging efforts to eliminate government waste
• Lawsuit filed by coalition of unions and retiree groups with ties to Democrat interests
Judge Blocks DOGE’s Access to Personal Records
A federal judge has ruled that the Social Security Administration likely violated privacy laws by allowing Elon Musk’s government efficiency team access to Americans’ private data. Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing Social Security records containing personally identifiable information.
It’s just the latest in a long list of judges blocking President Donald Trump and his team from streamlining the government.
The judge criticized DOGE for conducting what she called a “fishing expedition” without providing valid reasons for needing access to sensitive personal data. She ordered DOGE team members to delete all non-anonymized personally identifiable information they had accessed since January 20.
White House Defends Anti-Waste Efforts
The White House immediately pushed back against the ruling, characterizing it as judicial overreach. Harrison Fields, a spokesperson for the administration, defended the program’s intentions to root out government waste.
“This is yet another activist judge abusing the judicial system to try and sabotage the President’s attempts to rid the government of waste, fraud, and abuse,” Fields said.
The case revealed that DOGE staffers had been granted access to sensitive SSA databases, including Numident, which contains personal information of all social security number applicants. This information includes Social Security numbers, medical records, financial data, and other sensitive personal details.
Liberal Groups Behind the Legal Challenge
The lawsuit was filed by a coalition of unions and retiree groups with strong ties to Democratic interests. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the Alliance for Retired Americans, and the American Federation of Teachers joined forces with Democracy Forward to challenge DOGE’s access to the records.
Judge Hollander noted an irony in the case, pointing out that DOGE affiliates concealed their identities in court due to privacy concerns while not respecting the privacy of millions of Americans. “The defense does not appear to share a privacy concern for the millions of Americans whose SSA records were made available to the DOGE affiliates, without their consent,” Hollander wrote.
Skye Perryman, representing the plaintiffs, celebrated the ruling: “Today, the court did what accountability demands – forcing DOGE to delete every trace of the data it unlawfully accessed. The court recognized the real and immediate dangers of DOGE’s reckless actions and took action to stop it.”
While the judge acknowledged that “rooting out possible fraud, waste, and mismanagement in the SSA is in the public interest,” she insisted that “the government can’t flout the law to do so.” The restraining order will remain in effect while the case proceeds through the legal system.
