Ten Democratic lawmakers sent a letter to the tech company this week asking about its expanding contracts under the Trump administration.
Ten Democratic lawmakers sent a letter to Palantir on Monday demanding that the technology company answer questions about its expanding federal contracts under the Trump administration.
The letter cited a New York Times article in May that reported the Trump administration had broadened Palantir’s work across the government, with the company receiving more than $113 million in federal government spending since President Trump took office. Officials said the White House was laying the groundwork, partly by using Palantir technology, to consolidate data across the government so it could potentially compile a master list of personal information on Americans.
The letter, which was reviewed by The Times, was drafted by Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York. Other members of Congress who signed included Senators Elizabeth Warren and Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts.
“We write to demand information” about reports that Palantir is “enabling and profiting from serious violations of federal law by the Trump administration, which is amassing troves of data on Americans,” the letter said.
The Trump administration has already sought access to hundreds of data points on people through government databases, including their bank account numbers and medical claims. Mr. Trump could potentially use such information to police immigrants and punish critics, Democratic lawmakers and others have said. Privacy advocates, student unions and labor rights organizations have filed lawsuits to block data access.
Republican lawmakers have also raised concerns about the Trump administration’s plans to consolidate data across government agencies.