Democratic lawmakers urge banking regulators to reject Musk's access requests

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., sent a letter to banking regulators urging them to reject any requests by Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” to gain access to their payment systems or sensitive data.

“Given the sensitive data each of your agencies maintain as well as the critical payment infrastructure that the Federal Reserve operates, we urge that you and your staff do not aid and abet this kind of unconstitutional and unlawful conduct should you receive any request to do so by DOGE or other officials,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to leaders of the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and National Credit Union Administration.

Musk and his team have been under fire recently regarding their reported access to the Treasury Department’s payment systems. That sparked a lawsuit Feb. 3 to halt such access, while another lawsuit, filed Feb. 5, called on the court to stop Musk and his team from accessing data at the Labor Department.

A judge ruled Feb. 11 that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent can still have access to Treasury’s payment systems, while other DOGE workers and Musk cannot, responding to a separate lawsuit on the matter, according to Bloomberg. A hearing on that lawsuit is scheduled for Feb. 14.

In their letter, Warren and Waters wrote that “early evidence suggests the Trump Administration and DOGE are violating the U.S. Constitution and a variety of laws,” pointing to recent developments in the courts.

“To ensure the safety and soundness of our banking system and stability of our financial system, as well as to ensure all laws are properly followed, please let me know if you or your staff have received any similar requests from DOGE or other officials to gain access to information or payment systems you maintain,” the lawmakers urged the banking regulators.