Employees of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) may have access to millions of Americans' confidential social security data, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday, UNN reports citing Axios.
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As stated, this decision is a victory for the Trump administration, which tasked the Department of Government Efficiency with eradicating alleged waste and fraud in the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
This followed two lower court decisions to temporarily block DOGE access to the data. U.S. District Judge Ellen Hollander, who issued the initial ruling to stop access, asked why DOGE needed "unprecedented, unrestricted access to virtually all SSA data systems."
Three U.S. Supreme Court justices appointed by Democratic presidents voted against giving DOGE access to Social Security data until lower courts could resolve legal issues.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a separate opinion, joined by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in which she criticized the Supreme Court for issuing an extraordinary order in favor of the Trump administration again without the opportunity for briefing or oral argument.
"In essence, the 'urgency' underlying the government's motion to stay is that it cannot afford to wait for the completion of litigation before acting as it wishes," Jackson wrote.
"Once again, this court puts on its rescuer gear, rushes to the scene, and uses its equitable power to fan the flames, not extinguish them," Jackson wrote.