Elon Musk and his staffers from the Division of Authorities Effectivity defended their work in an hour lengthy interview on Fox Information as they give the impression of being to chop down the dimensions of the federal authorities and remove “fraud and waste.”
Within the wide-ranging interview Thursday, Musk and his staffers — a gaggle that has been notably out of the general public highlight amid ongoing controversies from DOGE — laid out their imaginative and prescient for effectivity throughout authorities companies, from the Inside Division to the Small Enterprise Administration.
“Within the context of the federal government we’re shifting like lightning,” Musk advised Fox Information host Bret Baier. However by way of his expectations, it’s shifting “slower than I’d like,” Musk mentioned.
For the reason that starting of the second Trump administration, Musk and his workforce at DOGE have lower down complete companies and instituted mass layoffs and voluntary buy-outs. Musk mentioned they’ve made progress, however that there’s extra to do.
Right here’s a couple of takeaways from Musk and his DOGE workforce.
An ‘Apple Retailer-like’ expertise
The group of tech employees assembled beneath the DOGE banner contains co-founder of Airbnb, Joe Gebbia, who’s engaged on DOGE’s mission to digitize the retirement course of for federal workers.
Talking about a big mine of retirement papers housed in Pennsylvania, Gebbia mentioned he believes DOGE may also help pace up modernizing authorities techniques.
“We actually consider that the federal government can have an Apple Retailer-like expertise. Fantastically designed, nice consumer expertise, fashionable techniques,” Gebbia mentioned.
Gebbia’s evaluation aligns with the method that Musk has dropped at reshaping the federal authorities. He added later that DOGE is empowering workers and bringing “the most effective of Silicon Valley and the enterprise world” to the federal government.
In protection of Social Safety
Musk and his workforce tackled one of many nice controversies they’ve confronted of their mission to modernize the federal authorities: social safety.
Democrats have slammed Musk for reducing jobs and creating instability throughout the Social Safety Administration. The Social Safety Administration web site has crashed numerous times over the last few weeks, whereas the company has been overwhelmed with cellphone calls and has plans to cut thousands of staffers.
However in responding to Democratic criticism, the DOGE workforce on Thursday defended their work on the Social Safety Administration, saying they’re “rigorously and methodically” taking a look at advantages claims and “ensuring any fraudulent ones are eradicated,” mentioned DOGE staffer Steve Davis. DOGE engineer Aram Moghaddassi added that they’re working to guard folks from fraud by growing cross-agency communication.
Musk mentioned that their work on social safety will assist folks get their advantages, saying reliable folks will get “extra social safety, not much less.” Musk additionally mentioned they might ensure that the web site stays on-line.
“We’re making an attempt to say that the 94-year-old grandmother goes to get her examine,” Musk mentioned.
‘Virtually nobody’ has been fired
Anthony Armstrong, a former banker who helped Musk purchase X and is now a senior adviser on the Workplace of Personnel Administration, downplayed the size of the mass layoffs, saying that almost all federal employees have been leaving “largely via voluntary means.”
He added that they’ve positioned a “heavy deal with being beneficiant, caring, compassionate and treating everybody with dignity and respect.”
“You’ve heard loads of information about folks getting fired. At this second in time, lower than .15 of the federal workforce has really been given a [reductions in force] discover,” Armstrong mentioned.
Most federal companies and departments have already submitted their plans for a discount of workforce, on account of be carried out in April. A leaked preliminary copy of those plans reported by the Washington Post suggests wherever from 8 to 50 % of the workforce of every company is on the chopping block. Musk and his workforce didn’t handle the upcoming RIFs.
“Principally virtually nobody has gotten fired, that’s what we’re saying,” Musk claimed.
