DOGE Meets with US Lawmakers for the First Time

December 9, 2024 TruthUSA

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) aims to streamline administrative government, repeal regulations, and cut spending.

Technology billionaire Elon Musk and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy met with U.S. lawmakers in Congress at the nation’s Capitol this week to discuss the next steps in their government’s plan for cost-cutting.

DOGE aims to streamline administrative government, repeal regulations, and cut spending, with a goal of reducing $2 trillion from the roughly $6.75 trillion federal budget.

It is not yet clear how DOGE—named in an apparent reference to the meme cryptocurrency dogecoin—will operate, as it is more of an advisory board than a government agency.

Some lawmakers believe this initiative could assist the incoming Trump administration in its efforts to eliminate government excess, free from the regulatory constraints that hinder agencies like the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

DOGE was established a month ago after a pre-election discussion between Musk and President-elect Donald Trump, who has suggested that it could be the “‘Manhattan Project’ of our time,” referring to the top-secret government program that developed the first nuclear weapons that ended World War II.

Musk and Ramaswamy released a mission statement in The Wall Street Journal on Nov. 20, calling for volunteers to join them in their monumental task.

“Unlike government commissions or advisory committees, we won’t just write reports or cut ribbons. We’ll cut costs,” they state in their op-ed.

Their deadline is set for America’s 250th birthday on July 4, 2026.

Regarding cutting regulations, Ramaswamy in a Nov. 13 statement on the social media platform X pointed out that a crucial aspect of their mission is to comply with a “legal *mandate* from the U.S. Supreme Court.” This year, the high court made a series of rulings regarding government agencies—ending the Chevron deference, which removes agencies’ authoritative decision-making powers, rendering many regulations obsolete.

About two-thirds of the total budget is mandatory and includes defense spending and popular programs like Social Security and Medicare, which may pose challenges for DOGE. Trump has committed to protecting Social Security.

Although around a third of the budget is discretionary, this provides DOGE with a starting point for budget cuts, along with various other indicators such as the government’s track record of financial mismanagement.

In its 2024 report, the GAO found that federal agencies reported approximately $236 billion in improper payments during fiscal year 2023.

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), through her monthly Squeal Awards, has long been identifying areas of waste, fraud, and inefficiencies.

“Everywhere you look in Washington, there is waste, fraud, and abuse,” Ernst, who plans to collaborate with DOGE, leading the Senate chapter of the newly formed Delivering Outstanding Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus, told The Epoch Times.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is expected to head a DOGE subcommittee working alongside Musk and Ramaswamy to address America’s $36 trillion debt.

Mark Tapscott contributed to this report.

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