'Hair-on-fire moment': Critics react with horror to Elon Musk's latest scheme

Alarms are being raised in the wake of a new report from the Washington Post claiming that allies of X owner Elon Musk have successfully pushed out the highest-ranking official at the United States Treasury Department over their demands to access highly sensitive government payment information.

According to the Post, longtime Treasury official David A. Lebryk is "expected to leave the agency soon" despite the fact that President Donald Trump actually appointed him as acting treasury secretary just last week.

The reason for Lebryk's departure is what has truly unnerved political observers, as the Post reports that he "had a dispute with Musk’s surrogates over access to the payment system the U.S. government uses to disburse trillions of dollars every year."

While the exact nature of the dispute is not yet known, the mere fact that Musk's allies are seeking access to the payment system has led to many experts and journalists to wave giant red flags about the danger it could pose.

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"This is a hair-on-fire situation," commented journalist Sarah Posner on BlueSky.

Julia Coronado, a clinical associate professor of finance at The University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business, also worried about the implications of the Musk allies' actions.

"The man whose rocket just exploded over south Florida in spectacular fashion, who had the FAA head removed because he dared to be concerned about his safety practices, who is a little too cozy with China will now have unfettered access to confidential Treasury payment systems... what could go wrong?" she wrote.

Scott Imberman, a professor of economics at Michigan State University, found himself flabbergasted by the situation.

"What the hell is Musk trying to do here?" he wondered. "This is extremely sensitive data."

Seth Masket, a political scientist at the University of Denver, questioned why Lebryk was departing instead of fighting to keep Musk from accessing the system.

"I mean no specific criticism of Lebryk, and I know I'm watching from the cheap seats," he wrote. "But if US democracy is going to survive it's going to require some decent people refusing to be bullied out of office by rich pricks outside the government and daring them to come get him."

And trial attorney Max Kennerly chided American business elites who had cozied up to Trump without seeming to care about how moves like this could cause a devastating economic meltdown.

"All the smart, savvy bankers and CEOs who think they're just getting deregulation with a side of racism do not understand they will also be taken for a ride, as Trump and Musk treat the entire federal government like a mob protection racket, freely skimming anywhere they like," he wrote.