A member of President Trump's Cabinet could be locked out from his job after a troubling decision from a federal judge appointed by Barack Obama.

Saturday's ruling from New York judge Paul Engelmayer blocked Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from accessing the Treasury's payment system, dealing a blow to President Trump's efforts to rein in government waste.

The wording of the order is also broad enough to block Trump's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent from accessing his own Department's data, the Justice Department said in an urgent request to end the judge's "remarkable intrusion" into the executive branch.

“Basic democratic accountability requires that every executive agency’s work be supervised by politically accountable leadership, who ultimately answer to the president,” the filing said.

Obama judge BLOCKS Cabinet

Democrats have rallied behind the judge as they accuse Trump and Musk of ignoring constitutional checks and balances in a supposed "coup" - but the president and his allies say it is Engelmayer who is overstepping.

Specifically, Engelmayer's order limits access to "civil servants" in the federal bureaucracy, while barring all "political appointees."

That wording has troubled many observers who say it essentially puts a single district court judge in control of the executive branch.

In a scathing legal filing, the Justice Department warned Engelmayer's order places career bureaucrats above accountability from the political leadership elected by the American people.

"To the extent the Order applies to senior political appointees at Treasury, it is an extraordinary and unprecedented judicial interference with a Cabinet Secretary’s ability to oversee the Department he was constitutionally appointed to lead. Interfering with those basic functions, even for a day, will cause irreparable harm to the government," the Justice Department said.

Despite the "overbreadth" of the judge's ruling, the government is complying with its terms, the DOJ said.

Vance, Musk, Trump unload on judge

Engelmayer's decision is a victory for 19 Democratic attorneys general, including Letitia James, a longtime Trump foe who led an unprecedented "business fraud" case against Trump that notoriously had no victims.

Vice president J.D. Vance weighed in over the weekend on the Treasury dispute, blasting Engelmayer for judicial overreach that threatens the "legitimate power" of the presidency.

If a judge tried to tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be illegal.

If a judge tried to command the attorney general in how to use her discretion as a prosecutor, that's also illegal.

Judges aren't allowed to control the executive's legitimate power.

— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 9, 2025

Musk has called for Engelmayer's impeachment, accusing the judge of a corrupt effort to block transparency into government spending.

President Trump called the ruling "very disappointing" in an interview that aired before the Superbowl, adding, "No judge should frankly be allowed to make that kind of a decision."