After the ouster of a top Treasury Department official who had resisted the move, Elon Musk and his team have received full access to a sensitive government system that handles trillions of dollars in federal payments. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent granted the unprecedented access late Friday, the New York Times reports, which could allow Musk's aides to block particular disbursements. They'll also apparently be able to see personal information about the Americans who receive Social Security benefits, tax refunds, or other payments from the federal government.
David Lebryk, who had served in nonpolitical roles in the Treasury Department for decades and was acting secretary before the Senate confirmed Bessent, had refused to grant access to Musk's representatives, per the Washington Post. Trump administration officials put Lebryk on leave; he then retired on Friday. The $6 trillion that flows through the system also includes salaries for federal employees and payments to government contractors and grant recipients. Access typically has been limited to a small group of career employees who run the system.
Musk, who's charged by President Trump with reducing government spending, posted criticism of the Treasury Department on Saturday, saying it should be rejecting more payments as fraudulent or improper. Former officials said it's up to the relevant agencies to ensure their payments are legitimate, per the Times. Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden objected to the move in a letter to Bessent on Friday. "I can think of no good reason why political operators who have demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law would need access to these sensitive, mission-critical systems," he wrote. (More Trump administration stories.)
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