Joanna Linden, left, and Elizabeth Leonard, both of Waterville, join others during a protest of Elon Musk Wednesday next to a Tesla charging station at Elm Plaza in Waterville. Musk, the tech billionaire who is CEO of Tesla, has been given access by the Trump administration to government payment systems containing private information. "I feel people like us need to stand up and fight for what's right," said one protester. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

WATERVILLE — About 15 people stood in frigid temperatures Wednesday at one of the city’s busiest intersections to protest the government granting the Department of Government Efficiency access to the computer system of the U.S. Department of the Treasury. DOGE, as the department is called, is led by tech billionaire and Tesla owner Elon Musk.

The protesters, set up next to a Tesla charging station at the entrance to Elm Plaza off Main Street, carried signs with messages including “Democracy, not Dictators,” and “Arrest Musk.”

Beth Schiller of Waterville said she fears for the country since Musk, whom President Donald Trump named to lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, sent people into offices to access basic computer systems of the federal government. That data includes Americans’ Social Security numbers, banking information, tax payments and other documents. DOGE is tasked with finding wasteful government spending.

“It makes no sense to have an unelected billionaire, the richest man in the world and the greediest man in the world, Elon Musk, running the payment system of our treasury,” said Schiller, 68. “He has no authority or qualifications for doing that. It’s completely illegal and it removes Congress from having the financial control that is constitutionally theirs.”

Schiller’s fears and concerns include those for her family, she said.

“My niece works for USAID in Washington and her husband works for the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, both of which are being wiped out, it seems,” Schiller said.

She was referring to the U.S. Agency for International Development, which provides humanitarian assistance across the globe and has been targeted for elimination by Musk.

Joanna Linden, left, Elizabeth Leonard, center, and Linda Woods, all of Waterville, join others Wednesday during a protest of Elon Musk next to a Tesla charging station at Elm Plaza in Waterville. Musk, the tech billionaire and Tesla CEO who was tapped by President Donald Trump to lead the Department of Government Efficiency, has been granted  access to government payment systems to look for savings. “I thought our country was more humane, and watching this government is scary,” says Woods. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

Protest organizer Elizabeth Leonard, 68, of Waterville, was holding a sign that said, “Senators! What are you doing now to stop the coup and restore the constitution, democracy and rule of law?”

An author, historian and professor emeritus of history at Colby College, Leonard said Musk’s actions essentially amount to a coup against the government by someone who has no legal right to take it over. And Musk’s actions are being allowed, according to Leonard.

“Any American who cares about the government, their privacy, their standing, their future, blackmail — they should be standing up against this unelected, unvetted monster,” she said.

Retired teacher Linda Woods, 73, of Waterville, said she is concerned for people on the margins who are severely impacted by Trump and Musk’s actions.

“I thought our country was more humane, and watching this government is scary,” Woods said. “We have a clear path of checks and balances that’s not being followed. One person is coming in with his buddy and taking over.”

Nikki Dufour, 26, of Brooks, was driving by the protest and stopped to take part. She said Trump and Musk are stripping away people’s rights and creating an unsafe world.

“I feel like we’re bringing so much hate into this world,” she said. “And I feel people like us need to stand up and fight for what’s right.”