Elon Musk’s DOGE lights out
DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, promised significant savings. It was disbanded with eight months remaining on its founding charter.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk said in a Dec. 9 podcast interview that the Department of Government Efficiency has had “some success” but that he has no intention of returning to the effort.
The CEOs of SpaceX and Tesla said on the “Katie Miller Podcast” that the Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, has been “only marginally successful” in its goal of saving taxpayers money and reducing spending and regulation. Musk’s controversial initiative laid off thousands of government workers but failed to deliver on promises to cut the federal budget.
“We’ve had some success,” Musk told DOGE adviser and press secretary Katie Miller, who is married to White House chief of staff Stephen Miller, earlier this year.
“We’ve cut off a lot of funding that just doesn’t make any sense and is just a complete waste,” Musk added. “For example, there were probably $100 a year worth of zombie payments, maybe $200 billion worth, and if we just enforce payment codes and payment explanations, those payments will no longer be made.”
Asked if he would do DOGE again, Musk said he had no such thoughts and believed he “wouldn’t have burned the car” if he could have focused on other businesses. Earlier this year, backlash against Mr. Musk and his DOGE efforts led to the vandalism of Tesla dealerships and individual vehicles, and dozens of protests erupted across the United States.
Musk gained political influence after supporting President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, becoming one of his campaign’s biggest donors. Earlier this summer, Musk left the White House after a public feud with Trump.
Dissolution of DOGE
Musk said the name DOGE was a “made-up name” created “based on suggestions on the internet.” Within DOGE’s first 100 days, it led to layoffs and buyouts, and thousands of federal employees lost their jobs.
Musk, backed by Trump, argued that DOGE would cut government spending. He initially said officials would cut $2 trillion in the first year and then revise it to $1 trillion. In April, Musk slashed that number, announcing at a Cabinet meeting that he would cut spending by $150 billion next year.
DOGE claimed to have cut tens of billions of dollars in spending since its creation. But outside financial experts said the figures could not be verified because the government agency does not provide access to its accounting methods.
Musk has also repeatedly touted government efforts on his X platform, at one point brandishing a chainsaw to promote the government’s efforts to cut jobs. “This is a chainsaw for bureaucracy,” Musk said at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland in February, holding a chainsaw above his head.
However, this effort did not last long. Musk announced his departure from the Trump administration in May after serving as a “special public servant” for about four months. In November, Director of Human Resources Management Scott Cooper said in a social media post that DOGE “lack[s]focused leadership.”
Coupole previously confirmed to Reuters, which first reported that the initiative no longer exists, that DOGE is no longer a “centralized organization.” The firm had been established for less than a year when it was disbanded.
Contributor: Kathryn Palmer, USA TODAY. Reuters
