Social Security Head Doubles Down on Threat to Kill Agency

“If she won’t fix it, I’ll shut it all down,” Dudek says as fears grow over political retaliation

The Trump-appointed acting head of the Social Security Administration is openly threatening to grind the agency to a halt—jeopardizing millions of Americans’ benefits—after a federal judge ruled to block his team from sharing sensitive data with a controversial Trump-era office.

Leland Dudek, who currently leads the SSA without Senate confirmation, told The Washington Post that he is prepared to “just start to shut it down” unless a recent court ruling is revised. The ruling temporarily blocks the agency from funneling private Social Security data to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a little-known agency that critics say is being used by Donald Trump to centralize power under loyalists like Elon Musk.

“I don’t have much of a choice here,” Dudek said Friday, painting the judge’s ruling as a bureaucratic straitjacket. “The language is ambiguous. It’s overly broad. It’s weirdly written.”

But legal experts and civil liberties advocates aren’t buying it.

“This looks like a temper tantrum disguised as governance,” said constitutional law professor Anita Morales of Georgetown University. “Threatening to shut down the entire Social Security Administration because you can’t access personal data for a political project? That’s authoritarian behavior, plain and simple.”

The Musk-Trump Data Alliance

The Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, was established during Trump’s second term with a mission to “streamline bureaucracy.” But watchdogs say it’s become a vehicle for data mining and political targeting—especially since tech magnate Elon Musk was appointed as a senior advisor overseeing government technology integration.

The agency’s latest request sought sweeping access to SSA records, including Americans’ work history, disability status, and earnings data. Judge Ellen Lipton Hollander’s Thursday ruling blocked that request, citing concerns over privacy and abuse of power.

In her decision, Hollander wrote that the SSA is “temporarily enjoined from disclosing any personally identifiable information to DOGE or its affiliates for a period of 14 days.”

Dudek’s argument? Everyone at SSA is technically an “affiliate” of DOGE now—because they’re under pressure to cooperate with Musk’s tech-driven initiatives.

“You’ve basically stopped us from functioning,” Dudek told the Post, adding that his legal team is demanding the court “clarify” the ruling. But if clarification doesn’t come swiftly, Dudek said, the agency may go dark.

A Weaponized Bureaucracy?

The threat has rattled many in Washington, especially given the stakes: more than 70 million Americans rely on the SSA for benefits ranging from retirement checks to disability support.

“This is not a drill,” warned Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), who sits on the House Oversight Committee. “The Trump administration is using access to your Social Security number as leverage for political gain. That’s not just unethical—it’s dangerous.”

Democratic lawmakers are now calling for immediate hearings into the role DOGE plays in collecting federal data, and whether SSA employees are being coerced into sharing it.

“This is what authoritarian creep looks like,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). “It starts with one agency. Then they demand the data. Then they threaten shutdowns.”

What Comes Next?

The Department of Justice has yet to issue a statement on whether it will support Dudek’s appeal for clarity. Meanwhile, SSA employees are reportedly in limbo—unsure whether to follow court orders or brace for internal shutdowns.

Unions representing SSA workers say morale is plummeting.

“Our staff came here to serve the American people—not to become pawns in a Trump-Musk power grab,” said Eleanor Ruiz, spokesperson for the National Federation of Federal Employees.

With just two weeks before the judge’s temporary injunction expires, the legal battle is likely to intensify—and millions of Americans are left wondering whether their benefits will be next on the chopping block.

Key Takeaway: A Trump-appointed official is threatening to shut down Social Security after a federal judge blocked data-sharing with Elon Musk’s agency. Critics are calling it political extortion.