Elon Musk’s DOGE Promised Savings, But It’s Cost Us a Fortune
The US government doesn’t have many watchdogs left. Donald Trump fired a whole bunch of them shortly after returning to power, and many others have been pushed out since. We do still have a Government Accountability Office (GAO), for what it’s worth, and one week ago, that office published a report detailing the remarkable lack […]
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) promised to save America money, but a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reveals that the opposite has occurred. DOGE has not only cost the country billions but also led to a dramatic decline in services and privacy protections.
One major casualty has been the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Under Trump’s direction, the IRS lost 28% of its workforce – including experienced employees – during the first year of DOGE’s reign. This dismantling crippled the agency’s ability to collect unpaid taxes and investigate tax fraud, leading to an estimated $600 billion in lost revenues over the next decade. The agency’s budget cuts, amounting to $263 billion, will only exacerbate this deficit.
DOGE’s impact extends far beyond the United States. Its reorganization of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has resulted in the deaths of at least 800,000 people, with estimates that 14 million more could die by 2030 if its programs are not reinstated. Moreover, DOGE’s consolidation of sensitive data from various agencies, including the IRS and Social Security Administration, into a massive database has raised serious privacy concerns.
Critics fear this data could be used for malicious purposes, such as voter suppression or further damaging undocumented immigrants.
The lack of transparency and accountability in DOGE's actions has dismayed even seasoned government officials. John Koskinen, a former IRS chief, expressed shock at how the agency was dismantled, calling it a "cliff" rather than a gradual review of programming. The abrupt nature of these cuts ensured "the most human harm possible."
In an era where privacy is already compromised by corporations, DOGE has pushed government institutions to the brink, undermining trust and leaving citizens vulnerable. The damage done by Musk’s unscrupulous project is a stark reminder of the importance of proper government oversight and transparency.
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