Democratic lawmakers have been physically blocked from four federal agencies this week by Elon Musk’s DOGE team. Today, around 30 to 40 members of Congress went to the Department of Education (currently targeted for shutdown by Donald Trump) intending to meet with Acting Secretary Denise Carter and were blocked at the door.
This attempt followed a letter Democrats sent to Carter demanding a meeting on the Trump administration’s plans to “illegally dismantle or drastically reduce the department.” But when they arrived, they were locked out by a security officer denying entry.
Democrats were blocked from entering USAID on Monday, the Treasury Department on Tuesday, and the EPA on Thursday.
DOGE staffers had gained full access to the Treasury’s payment systems controlling trillions of dollars. One staffer, Marko Elez, has now resigned due to racist posts.
Democrats have posted photos and videos to Twitter/X showing a man named Jim Hairfield, deputy assistant secretary, Office of Security, Facilities and Logistics Services at the Department of Education, blocking the door.
All of the agencies Democrats have been denied access to are currently in the grasp of Elon Musk’s DOGE team.
Representative Mark Takano said, “Democrats are literally locked out of the Department of Education. But that doesn’t mean we stop fighting. Keep making calls, keep using your voice, do not back down.”
Senators Chuck Schumer and Elizabeth Warren are additionally trying to figure out if the DOGE team has access to all federal student loan information, which contains very sensitive information of millions of Americans — social security numbers, income information, and more.
