'Dangerous, unelected and unhinged: Dems slam Musk's new 'unprecedented abuse of power’

04 February

A 3D-printed miniature model of Elon Musk and a U.S. flag are seen in this illustration taken January 23, 2025.

Democratic members of Colorado’s congressional delegation reacted with shock Monday to reports that a team led by Trump administration-empowered Elon Musk had infiltrated sensitive data and financial systems overseen by multiple federal government agencies.

Several of the members said Musk’s actions are illegal and promised to oppose them, though they offered few details on how they would check him.

“My constituents are terrified and feel that this is an immense breach of privacy,” U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, a Denver Democrat, said in a statement. “We cannot allow an unelected billionaire to access the most sensitive information, and I will not stand idly by while Trump does nothing to lower everyday costs for Denverites or the American people.”

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After he was elected president in November, Donald Trump assigned Musk, the world’s richest person and a Trump megadonor, to lead a new White House entity, the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

In recent days, Musk deputies gained access, in the face of resistance by a senior career civil servant, to a Treasury Department system that handles federal government payments worth trillions of dollars. Data in the system includes personal information about millions of Americans who receive Social Security, Medicare, tax refunds and other federal payments. They also shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, which was established as an independent entity by Congress. It manages projects and distributes funds in about 130 countries and is credited with generating international goodwill toward the U.S. The Musk team also reportedly locked civil servants out of systems at the Office of Personnel Management, potentially compromising the data of millions of federal employees.

“This is an unprecedented abuse of power by a dangerous, unelected, and unhinged person,” U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen, a Lakewood Democrat, said in a statement to Newsline. “Americans shouldn’t have to worry that an unelected billionaire could stop payments to lifesaving programs all so he can further enrich himself and further his own self-interest at our expense.”

Joe Neguse of Lafayette, the assistant minority leader in the U.S. House, said, “The President does not have the authority to eliminate statutorily authorized agencies, impound funds lawfully appropriated by the Congress, or to give unfettered access to core government financial payment and personnel systems to his billionaire campaign donors. These actions are dangerous, reckless and unlawful.”

Democratic U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado sits on the Senate Finance Committee, which has Treasury Department oversight responsibilities. In a social media post Monday, Bennet wrote, “Reports of meddling in important Treasury payment systems is incredibly dangerous and risks severe damage to our country and economy. I will be pushing for answers alongside my colleagues on the Senate Finance Committee.”

Republican U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert of Windsor, however, expressed support for Musk’s actions. In a social media post Sunday, she wrote, referring to USAID, “America is tired of being the world’s ATM. We need to take care of our own people first.”

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Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: info@coloradonewsline.com.

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