Top-ranked Treasury official exits over DOGE access to federal payment systems

A top Treasury Department official resigned this week rather than comply with a request by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

David Lebryk, a career bureaucrat, resigned after DOGE boss Elon Musk’s team demanded access to the payment system that the federal government uses to pay out trillions of dollars every year in Social Security and Medicare, among other things.

The Washington Post subsequently claimed that “it is unclear” why Musk’s team wants access to the system but did admit that DOGE’s purpose is to trim spending wherever feasible. And since the Treasury’s payment system is at the center of federal spending, it makes sense that Musk would want access to it.

Shedding some light on the matter, Musk posted on X: “The @DOGE team discovered, among other things, that payment approval officers at Treasury were instructed always to approve payments, even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups. They literally never denied a payment in their entire career. Not even once.”

Musk’s request nevertheless has triggered a flurry of wild accusations from the left, with former Obama/Biden era administration official Mark Mazur suggesting DOGE is a partisan operation with “bad intentions.”

“This is a mechanical job — they pay Social Security benefits, they pay vendors, whatever,” he complained to the Post. “It’s not one where there’s a role for nonmechanical things, at least from the career standpoint. Your whole job is to pay the bills as they’re due. It’s never been used in a way to execute a partisan agenda.”

But it’s not clear why trimming/auditing America’s bloated spending is perceived as a “partisan agenda.” As noted by conservative activist Robby Starbuck, “Why would career bureaucrats fear an audit by @elonmusk and @doge to see where we can save money?”

Meanwhile, progressive activist Lindsay Owens of Groundwork Collaborative has begun using this latest fiasco to accuse the Trump administration of wanting to cut Social Security and Medicare.

“The Trump administration’s claims that they won’t touch Social Security and Medicare are obviously lies,” she told Common Dreams. “Musk and his DOGE cronies are already demanding unprecedented access to the payment system that distributes these funds and are ousting any civil servant who gets in their way.”

“It’s barely been two weeks and Musk has already caused a level of chaos and inefficiency we’ve never before seen in government,” she added.

Yet DOGE’s very purpose is to root out chaos and inefficiency by auditing America’s bloated spending. Plus, Social Security and Medicare aren’t the only payments made through the system. There are plenty of other programs that Musk might be interested in cutting.

This obvious fact hasn’t stopped congressional Democrats from eagerly jumping on the conspiracy theory wagon, with Sen. Chris Murphy accusing Musk of wanting to “steal” from the American people.

Observe:

Critics have pushed back on Democrats like Murphy by noting that, if anything, it’s the government that’s been stealing money from the American people, ergo why Musk and crew want to trim government spending.

“I’m sorry, but it’s YOU who have been stealing from US,” one critic tweeted at the senator. “They’re trying to stop your theft (taxes) and ridiculous spending that has put our entire nation at risk of financial failure. Just shut up and let the adults fix your mess. Thanks.”

Another critic noted that, unlike Lebryk, Musk was chosen by the American people via their vote for President Donald Trump.

“If one of the people you’re referring to is Elon Musk, he was chosen by Pres Trump, who, in case you missed it, was elected in a landslide victory by the people of the United States to make decisions on their behalf, including Elon,” the critic explained. “We wanted Elon, he picked Elon.”

See more responses below:

Vivek Saxena

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