How Is Trump Challenging Federal Judge Treasury Ruling?

The Justice Department of President Donald Trump filed a court filing to “dissolve”, “modify/clarify”, or “dissolve” a federal ruling that prevented the Department of Government Efficiency (DGE) from accessing the Treasury Department’s payment system.

Early Saturday morning, U.S. district judge Paul A. Engelmayer issued an emergency order blocking Elon Musk and his DOGE team’s access to personal and financial information for millions of Americans stored at the Treasury Department.

Trump appointed Musk to lead the advisory DOGE. DOGE is tasked with finding new ways to streamline government spending and streamline services.

The order of Engelmayer restricts access to the department’s payment systems and data to “all government employees and special government employees” as well as to government employees who are detailed by an agency other than the Treasury Department.

The DOJ filed an order late Sunday night in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York stating that Engelmayer’s order is “a remarkable intrusion into the Executive Branch which is in direct contradiction with Article II of the Constitution and the unitary framework it provides.”

“WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING (again): The Justice Department asked a court to urgently ‘dissolve’ or ‘modify/clarify’ the sweeping order that blocks Musk allies — and political leadership in Treasury from accessing the government’s massive payment system,” Politico’s Kyle Cheney posted on X early Monday morning with a copy of the court filing.

In the order, it was stated that the Trump administration had “already begun negotiations with [19] of the states who brought the lawsuit to narrow the order.”

There is no basis to distinguish between “civil servants” and “political appointees”. To ensure basic democratic accountability, the work of every executive agency must be overseen by a politically accountable leadership who will ultimately answer to the President,” DOJ lawyers wrote in their filing.

Cheney pointed out also that Thomas Krause, Musk’s lone ally, had a seven-page statement detailing his work on the system and stating he was properly trained. He claims his access was restricted to an ‘over-the-shoulder’ review of the code and copies.