Rep. Mark Takano and other Democratic lawmakers are blocked from entering the Department of Education in Washington on Feb. 7. Photo courtesy of Rep. Mark Takano’s office

A group of House Democrats tried and failed Friday to gain entry to the Department of Education to meet with the acting secretary.

Why it matters: It is the fourth time this week that Democratic lawmakers have been blocked from entering a federal agency that has been targeted by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

What they’re saying: “Roughly 30 or 40 members of Congress went to the Department of Education … letting Acting Secretary Denise Carter know that we intended to meet with her today,” said Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.).

• The lawmakers were there to follow up on a letter they sent Carter demanding an “urgent meeting” on “plans to illegally dismantle or drastically reduce the Department.”
• “We then proceeded to enter the Department of Education and we were locked out,” Takano told Axios, “a security officer came out and said … there was no scheduled meeting.
• Takano added that “there was no official from the Department of Education who could back up what the security guard told us.”

Zoom out: A group of House and Senate Democrats were blocked Monday from entering the U.S. Agency for International Development — which DOGE has moved to shut down.

• On Tuesday it was the Treasury Department, where DOGE staffers have gained access to a payment system used to provide funds to federal agencies.

Zoom in: Videos posted to social media show Democratic lawmakers grilling the security officer in a heated exchange. The officer told them: “There is no business purpose to be here.”

• Education Department spokesperson Jim Bradshaw told Axios: “The protest was organized by members of Congress who were exercising their First Amendment rights, which they are at liberty to do. They did not have any scheduled appointments, and the protest has since ended.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.