'Power grab': Jeffries unveils data protection bill amid DOGE crackdown

House Democrats unveiled authorities connected Thursday that seeks to unafraid the idiosyncratic information of Americans amid the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE) spending sweep.

House Democrats unveiled the Taxpayer Data Protection Act to "shield the American radical from this out-of-control powerfulness grab, permanently, and marque definite that the financial, personal, medical, and confidential accusation of the American radical is protected."

Musk and his squad astatine DOGE person spent the past 2 weeks going into assorted authorities departments and identifying "wasteful" spending wherever cuts tin beryllium made. 

Musk was precocious granted access to the Treasury Department, which manages national finances and taxes, wherever helium has "read only" entree to the government's outgo system, a Treasury Department authoritative told members of Congress connected Tuesday.

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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries speaks astatine a property conference. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Democrats person vocally opposed the sweep, suggesting during a property league connected Thursday that Musk is gaining entree to the idiosyncratic entree of Americans and introducing authorities to circumvent immoderate efforts. 

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., claimed that Republicans are "working for Elon Musk and doing the bidding of an unelected, unaccountable, retired of power billionaire puppet master."

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"Why does Elon Musk and his minions request entree to the names, Social Security numbers, addresses, and birthdates of millions of Americans?" Jeffries asked. 

Elon Musk and his squad astatine DOGE person spent the past 2 weeks going into assorted authorities departments and identifying "wasteful" spending. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

"What are they doing with that information, and wherefore aren't House Republicans stopping them?" Jeffries said, adding that a Senate companion measure is expected to beryllium introduced shortly.

Amid Democratic absorption to the spending sweep, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended Musk and DOGE.

"Elon Musk is the top entrepreneur of this generation," Bessent told FOX Business big Larry Kudlow. "DOGE is not going to fail. They are moving a batch of people's food present successful the capital, and erstwhile you perceive this squawking, past immoderate presumption quo involvement is not happy."

A information defender stands astatine the entranceway to the U.S. Agency for International Development office connected Feb. 3, 2025, successful Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

On Thursday, a national justice temporarily blocked DOGE from obtaining entree to definite Treasury Department outgo records. 

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According to a impermanent restraining order, Treasury officials "will not supply entree to immoderate outgo grounds oregon outgo strategy of records maintained wrong the [Treasury] Bureau of Fiscal Service," Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly wrote.