And savings. They are keen on savings. Specifically, there is an interest in applying zero-based budgeting to the federal government, a favored financial strategy in Silicon Valley where each expense must be justified from the ground up. One approach to achieve this is to offer legally questionable buyouts to nearly all federal employees, who account for a small fraction of the overall budget. Another seemingly arbitrary move is the dismantling of USAID simply because it can be done. (If you’re curious about how this is permissible, numerous experts would tell you it’s not.) The reality that such funding has already been rationalized and mandated by Congress is seen as a mere inconvenience, or perhaps not viewed as a concern at all.
These goals are just the ones we’re aware of. They have, by this point, established such extensive involvement in numerous agencies that virtually anything is feasible. The only certainty is that these actions are transpiring behind closed doors.
Musk’s supporters, and many of Trump’s, have applauded these developments. Surely billionaires are knowledgeable; they’ve earned their wealth, after all. The bright-eyed, tech-savvy engineers are precisely what this nation needs, rather than the outdated, analog perspective of yesteryear. It’s time to modernize the Constitution. Sure, why not give Big Balls a memecoin while we’re at it.
However, the majority of software startups tend to fail. They pursue bold risks that often do not yield results, leaving behind the remnants of their failures as they eagerly begin crafting new proposals. This is the process that DOGE is imposing on the United States.
No one would claim that the federal bureaucracy is flawless, or particularly efficient. Certainly, it can be improved. It absolutely should be. Yet, there are reasons why transformation occurs gradually, thoughtfully, through processes involving elected representatives, civil servants, and careful deliberation. The stakes are too significant, and the cost of failure is complete and irretrievable.
Musk will recreate the U.S. government in the way that the hyperloop reimagined trains, the Boring company reformed subways, and Juicero transformed juicing. Which is to say that he will not actually reinvent anything, solve no issues, and offer no remedies beyond those that serve to enhance his own authority and affluence. He will dismantle democracy to its core and reconstruct it in the fragmented image of his own enterprises. He will act swiftly. He will cause disruption.
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WIRED Reads
The Young, Inexperienced Engineers Supporting Elon Musk’s Government Takeover: Engineers aged between 19 and 24, most affiliated with Musk’s firms, are playing a crucial role as he takes charge of federal infrastructure.
A 25-Year-Old with Connections to Elon Musk Has Direct Access to the Federal Payment System: The Bureau of the Fiscal Service is a low-profile segment of the Treasury Department. Nonetheless, it is reported that a 25-year-old engineer linked to Musk possesses administrative access over the coding that governs Social Security payments, tax returns, and more.
DOGE Teen Owns ‘Tesla.Sexy LLC’ and Worked at Startup That Has Hired Convicted Hackers: Experts express doubts regarding whether Edward Coristine, a DOGE staff member known as “Big Balls” online, would meet the background check typically required for access to sensitive U.S. government systems.
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What Else We’re Reading
🔗 Elon Musk’s DOGE is Feeding Sensitive Federal Data into AI to Identify Cuts: In relation to AI, the DOGE team is utilizing it to search for budgetary cuts within the Department of Education—which implies that sensitive information is being processed in the course. (The Washington Post)
🔗 All the Ways Elon Musk is Violating the Law, Explained by a Law Professor: If something seems amiss about DOGE, it likely is. (Vox)
🔗 Netanyahu Gave Trump a Golden Pager During Their Meeting in Washington: At least he understands his audience. (CNN)
