Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit
borgster | on: DOGE has 'god mode' access to government data
The President is the head of the executive branch. If _anyone_ in the executive branch has access to information, it feels like the presidents office should too.

Why is this hard to accept?

loading story #43117275
loading story #43113963
mexicocitinluez | parent | next
> If _anyone_ in the executive branch has access to information, it feels like the presidents office should too.

Are you an idiot? Can you point to the last time some foreigner was given access to American's personal data without any oversight?

Extropy_ | root | parent
Elon Musk has Canadian, US, and South-African citizenship
envp | root | parent | next
So it’s okay because he’s rich?
loading story #43115291
ndsipa_pomu | parent | next
Because it's Musk following his own agenda and he apparently isn't the president
snvzz | root | parent
Musk is acting with full president support.
dkjaudyeqooe | root | parent
Doesn't mean either are acting within the law
loading story #43119071
loading story #43115689
mrguyorama | parent | next
If the CEO of my ecommerce company had easy, unmonitored access to all our data, we would fail industry audits and not be allowed to take credit card transactions. Sure, they have access if they really need it, but it's logged and monitored, and if you use it too much there will be questions.

It's a joke that any of you assholes are defending this. This does not pass any sniff test.

Stop making excuses.

cryptonector | root | parent
The president has absolute authority to access to all secrets within the executive branch, and has absolute declassification authority, both statutorily and presumptively constitutionally as a result of a) being the president, b) being able to nominate his cabinet, c) being able to issue executive orders to his executive branch officers and acting officers.

The president therefore has the authority to access every last secret and every last system within the executive branch. No statute can limit this power. The president also has the authority to delegate (to some extent; only the president can issue EOs, but presumably his officers can recommend EOs to him) these powers to his or her officers.

The titular of the U.S. Digital Service (DOGE) is statutorily not subject to Senate confirmation, though considering how Trump's controversial nominees have sailed through Senate confirmation it's easy to suppose that Musk would also likely be confirmed to head the USDS were it an appointment subject to Senate confirmation. Since the president can appoint someone like Elon Musk to head the USDS, and since the president can delegate his clearance and declassification authority to someone like Elon Musk, his doing so does very much "pass [the] sniff test".

loading story #43118997
loading story #43116150
loading story #43115987
loading story #43121017