Judge Temporarily Blocks DOGE from Social Security Data, Calls It a ‘Fishing Expedition’

A federal judge has temporarily blocked Elon Musk’s Department of Government of Efficiency from accessing Americans’ personal data at the Social Security Administration. On Thursday, District Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander argued that, while Musk’s minions claim they are on a mission to root out fraud and abuse at the agency, they haven’t provided any evidence of their claims, nor have they shown why it requires access to millions of Americans’ sensitive information. “The DOGE Team is essentially engaged in a fishing expedition at SSA, in search of a fraud epidemic, based on little more than suspicion,” Hollander said, in her court order. “It has launched a search for the proverbial needle in the haystack, without any concrete knowledge that the needle is actually in the haystack.” The case before the court concerns a lawsuit brought by numerous groups representing retirees, including the Alliance for Retired Americans and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employe ... Read full article.