Trump team challenges court order blocking Treasury access

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The Justice Department, under President Donald Trump’s administration, has submitted a court filing seeking to either dissolve or modify a federal judge’s ruling that currently prevents the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing Treasury Department payment systems.

Earlier on Saturday, U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer issued an emergency order blocking Elon Musk’s DOGE team from accessing Treasury-held personal and financial information of millions of American citizens.

The DOGE team, led by Trump appointee Musk, was established to identify methods for improving government efficiency and reducing expenditure. Engelmayer’s ruling specifically prevents access to department payment systems and related data for “all political appointees, special government employees, and government employees detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department.”

Judge Paul Engelmayer Must Be Held Accountable

As a father, it is unbearable to watch my son, @AriTeman, be railroaded by a corrupt judicial system. Judge Paul Engelmayer has consistently refused to recuse himself from cases in which he holds multi-million dollar… pic.twitter.com/rzgfyyPnmt

— David Teman (@dteman) February 9, 2025

The Justice Department filed their response late Sunday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The filing argues that Engelmayer’s order represents “a remarkable intrusion on the Executive Branch that is in direct conflict with Article II of the Constitution, and the unitary structure it provides.”

“WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING (again): The Justice Department asked a court to urgently ‘dissolve’ or ‘modify/clarify’ the sweeping order that blocks Musk allies — and political leadership in Treasury from accessing the government’s massive payment system,” wrote Politico’s Kyle Cheney on X, sharing the court document.

The administration indicated in the filing that negotiations were already underway with the 19 states that initiated the lawsuit to narrow the scope of the order. Justice Department attorneys contested the distinction between different types of government employees, stating, “There is not and cannot be a basis for distinguishing between ‘civil servants’ and ‘political appointees.’ Basic democratic accountability requires that every executive agency’s work be supervised by politically accountable leadership, who ultimately answer to the President.”

Outrageous. Obama Judge Paul Engelmayer didn’t just bar @elonmusk and @doge from Treasury systems, he barred the Secretary of the Treasury himself. Without citing a single law or even allowing Trump admin to appear in court! This outlaw should be reversed immediately and…

— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) February 8, 2025

According to Cheney’s additional reporting, Thomas Krause, currently the only Musk associate with system access, provided a seven-page declaration detailing his involvement with the system and confirming his proper training. Krause’s document specified that his access was restricted to ‘over the shoulder’ review and code copies.