In a big move that’s already stirring conversation, the U.S. Supreme Court has temporarily granted the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—a Trump-era initiative once led by Elon Musk—access to sensitive data from the Social Security Administration (SSA). This includes Social Security numbers, medical records, mental health details, and even family court documents.
The decision, made on Friday in a 6–3 vote, came after lower courts had blocked DOGE from accessing this private information. But now, at least for the time being, the Supreme Court says DOGE can go ahead while the case continues in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Court’s conservative majority supported the Trump administration’s argument that the data is necessary for DOGE’s mission of “modernizing government tech and making things run more efficiently.” Liberal justices disagreed, expressing concern about privacy risks while the legal battle plays out.
Why All the Fuss?
This all began on Day One of Trump’s second term, when he tasked DOGE with upgrading federal technology and cutting down on government waste. But not everyone was on board. Michelle King, the SSA’s acting commissioner at the time, refused to hand over the data and later resigned. Her replacement, Leland Dudek, reversed the decision and gave DOGE full access—what critics now call “unfettered.”
Not the Only Big Court Move
This ruling is just the latest in a string of decisions from the high court leaning in favor of Trump and conservative causes:
The Court unanimously rejected Mexico’s lawsuit against U.S. gun makers.
It sided with a woman who claimed she was discriminated against for being straight.
It declined to step in on lawsuits demanding oil companies pay up for alleged climate-related damage—potentially opening the door for more such lawsuits in the future.
Critics say these climate cases are less about the environment and more about pushing political agendas. O.H. Skinner of the Alliance for Consumers warned, “Consumers lose in these lawsuits—these are about banning products and redirecting money to activist projects.”
Adam White of the American Enterprise Institute added that by not addressing a major climate case out of Honolulu, the Court may be encouraging activist-led attempts to regulate the energy sector through the courts.
Immigration Ruling Shakes Things Up
In another major decision, the Court allowed the Trump administration to end temporary legal status for over 500,000 migrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and Nicaragua—undoing a Biden-era immigration policy. This means many migrants now face possible deportation as the case plays out in lower courts.
This type of legal status, known as “parole,” allows people to live and work in the U.S. temporarily for humanitarian or public benefit reasons. Biden had used it as part of a broader border strategy—but now the Court’s ruling has put that plan on pause.