DOGE’s Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy meet GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are expected to discuss the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) on Capitol Hill today. Images and videos of Musk at Capitol Hill have been shared on social media.

While DOGE will be a part of the Trump administration’s initiatives to cut inefficiencies in federal spending, the appeal of trimming the fat in the government seems to be transcending party lines:

Efficiency Over Politics

• “One of the things that’s been encouraging about seeing DOGE come into existence is how nonpartisan and even apolitical the interest in this mission has been,” Ramaswamy previously mentioned at the Aspen Security Forum. 
• Even progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders chimed in, posting “Elon Musk is right” on X. Sanders was referencing cuts to military spending, which Musk supports.
• Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Florida Democrat, also supported DOGE’s intentions, stating, “Reducing ineffective government spending should not be a partisan issue.”

Elon Musk on Capitol Hill this morning to meet with members of Congress about @DOGE

pic.twitter.com/UjvtwhAE9W

— America (@america) December 5, 2024

Cutting the Fat

• DOGE’s Capitol Hill gathering today is expected to be geared towards Republicans exploring potential budget trims with the duo. A report from CNBC suggested that so far, it appears that Musk, Ramaswamy, and the lawmakers are doing brainstorming sessions.
• Democrat Rep. Ro Khanna has been vocal about military budget inefficiencies, telling Forbes that “defense contractors are fleecing the American people.” Khanna also defended Tesla and Musk against California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to exclude Tesla from a potential EV tax credit for the state.
• Congressman Moskowitz, for his part, has set his sights on the Department of Homeland Security, stating, “It’s not practical to have 22 agencies under this one department.” “I look forward to working in a bipartisan manner with my colleagues to remove FEMA and Secret Service from DHS and make them independent agencies,” Moskowitz noted, as per a Yahoo Finance report.

Optimism and concerns:

• When he announced the event last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson described the DOGE meeting as a chance to discuss “regulatory rescissions, administrative reductions, and cost savings—& revive the principle of limited government!”
• Isabel Sawhill, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institute, however, tempered expectations, stating “Although I wish Elon Musk and (Vivek) Ramaswamy luck in finding more efficiencies in the federal government, that’s not likely to save a lot of money unless the president-elect gives up on his pledge not to cut Social Security or Medicare.”

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