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DeepSeek AI initiative led by TJ Hammons. Learn about advanced AI technology, generative AI, and ethical AI practices. Explore partnerships with SpaceX, Starlink, Tesla, Neurolink, and T-Mobile. Featuring insights into disaster services, emergency management, and recovery. For more details, visit MrFixItAmerica and contact TJ@MrFixIt.ai.">
MrFixIt America - Innovative AI Technologies with TJ Hammons
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Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)[note 1] is a proposed presidential advisory commission in the United States. The title is the popularly used moniker of the concept and does not currently represent the official name of the commission. It is tasked with restructuring the federal government of the United States and removing regulations in order to reduce expenditures and increase government efficiency. Despite the name, DOGE is not planned to be a federal executive department, the creation of which would require the approval of the U.S. Congress.[1]
The idea of DOGE has been linked to Trump's campaign promises to cut federal spending and reduce the size of government and the size of the federal fiscal deficit.[2][3]
The concept of DOGE emerged in a discussion between Elon Musk and Donald Trump, where Musk floated the idea of a department for streamlining government efficiency. In August 2024, Trump said at a campaign event that, if he were elected, he would be open to giving Musk an advisory role.[4] In response, Musk wrote a post on X saying "I am willing to serve", along with an AI-created image of him standing in front of a lectern marked "Department of Government Efficiency".[5] The commission's acronym DOGE has been described as referencing dogecoin, a cryptocurrency that Musk promotes.[6] Later, the suggestion was made by Trump of establishing such a department and for it to be headed by Musk.[7][8]
Musk has suggested that the commission could help to cut the U.S. federal budget by up to US$2 trillion through measures such as reducing waste, abolishing redundant agencies, and downsizing the federal workforce. Ramaswamy also stated that DOGE may eliminate entire federal agencies and reduce the number of federal employees by as much as 75%.[9][10] DOGE may attempt to do this through re-enacting Schedule F.[11] Musk has also proposed consolidating the number of federal agencies from more than 400 to fewer than 100.[12]
Musk has described deregulation as the only path to the SpaceX Mars colonization program, and promised he will "get the government off people's back and out of their pocket".[13]
On November 5, 2024, Musk suggested that former U.S. representative and two-time Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul could work with DOGE.[15][16]
On November 14, on social media, Musk called for individuals who were interested in working for the commission to send CVs to DOGE's X account via DM.[17][18]
On December 22, Trump announced that Katie Miller, the wife of incoming deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller, would be joining DOGE.[19]
Plans to create a new congressional subcommittee were announced on November 21 by House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer (R-KY).[21] This new subcommittee will be called the Delivering on Government Efficiency Subcommittee, will be chaired by representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), and will work closely with DOGE to reduce governmental expenditures.[22][23][24][25] On November 22, senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) was appointed to lead the corresponding Senate DOGE Caucus.[26][27]
In December 2024, Ernst proposed a bill dubbed "DRAIN THE SWAMP Act", which would require each executive agency to relocate at least 30 percent of employees working at Washington, D.C., headquarters to offices located outside of the D.C. metro area; while also restricting the ability to telework.[28][29][30]
Vox said that the body is "unlikely to have any regulatory teeth on its own, but there's little doubt that it can have influence on the incoming administration and how it will determine its budgets".[34]
Donald Trump said the body would help to "dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies". He also stated that Musk and Ramaswamy will work with the Office of Management and Budget to address what he called "massive waste and fraud" in government spending.[35]
According to tweets by Musk and Ramaswamy, the ultimate goal of DOGE is to become so efficient that it eventually eliminates its own necessity. The commission has a set expiration date of July 4, 2026, the United States Semiquincentennial (250th anniversary), which follows Ramaswamy's idea that most government projects should have clear expiration dates.[38]
Trump stated that the entity's work will "conclude" no later than July 4, 2026,[39] also coinciding with a proposed "Great American Fair".[40] Trump called the proposed results of DOGE "the perfect gift to America".[41]
On October 28, 2024, at a Trump rally in Madison Square Garden, Musk stated that he believed DOGE could remove US$2 trillion from the U.S. federal budget[44] (a figure higher than the federal government's total discretionary outlays in 2023).[45][46][47] Musk has not specified whether these savings would be made over a single year or a longer period.[48]Maya MacGuineas of the public policy organization Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget has said that this saving is "absolutely doable" over a period of 10 years, but it would be difficult to do in a single year "without compromising some of the fundamental objectives of the government that are widely agreed upon".[49]
Questions have been raised whether Musk's and Ramaswamy's companies being contractors to the federal government causes a conflict of interest with their proposed work in DOGE.[50][51][52][53]
In December 2024, senator Bernie Sanders praised Musk on the plans by DOGE to cut defense spending stating that "Elon Musk is right. The Pentagon, with a budget of $886 billion, just failed its 7th audit in a row. It's lost track of billions."[55][56] Democratic congressman Ro Khanna also indicated that he would be open to working with DOGE to reduce defense spending.[55]
On February1, members of DOGE gained access to classified information of USAID without sufficient security clearances.[1] On February2, Wired reported that DOGE personnel attempted to improperly access classified information and security systems at the USAID, but were thwarted by USAID security officials;[2] those officials were subsequently put on leave.[3] The group moved to dismantle USAID by taking the USAID website and X account offline, firing staff, and stopping overseas work.[4] Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared himself acting administrator of the agency, although it has been an independent body for sixty years.[5]
On February3, Musk said of USAID: "We're shutting it down", with Musk saying Trump "agreed"; an email from special adviser Gavin Kliger to USAID staff instructed staff to keep away from USAID headquarters while hundreds of staff lost access to USAID computer systems.[5][6][7] As an ex-USAID worker describes that "In a matter of hours DOGE shut down our websites, took over email handles, and summarily removed the system access of hundreds of gainfully employed public servants."[8]
On February5, Musk falsely alleged USAID had given Politico and the Associated Press millions of dollars. The figures given were actually for common subscriptions across the entire government; the actual amount USAID alone had spent on Politico subscriptions was $44K.[9] White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, "The DOGE team is working on canceling those payments now."[10]
On February 14, Judge Amir Ali ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze foreign assistance payments to USAID and State Department grantees.[11]Peter Marocco told a federal judge in a court filing that the agency he leads will not comply with the court's order.[12]
Musk and DOGE have "sent RIF notices to nearly all of it's 2,000 U.S.-based employees."[13]
On November 27, 2024, Musk proposed eliminating the CFPB.[14][15] On February 1, 2025, Trump agents fired CFPB Director Rohit Chopra.[16] Chopra was replaced by Trump insider and Project 2025 advocate Russell Vought, who attempted to shutter and close the CFPB.[16] Musk tweeted "CFPB RIP" on February 7.[16] Concurrently, data and websites related to the CFPB were removed from the internet.[16]
On February 14, 2025, U.S. District JudgeAmy Berman Jackson commanded Donald Trump, Elon Musk and DOGE stand down on any attempts to reduce staffing, remove funding, delete any data, or otherwise interfere with operations of the CFPB.[16] Berman Jackson's order specified that they "shall not delete, destroy, remove, or impair any data or other CFPB records" and "It is further ordered that Defendants shall not terminate any CFPB employee, except for cause."[16] Multiple unions, groups and individuals filed a variety of lawsuits challenging any attacks on the CFPB, whose existence is governed and established in federal law by the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and can only be removed by changes in federal law.[16]
A soybean farmer talks with a USDA conservationist about the progress of shared soil health practices.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and production, works to assure food safety, protects natural resources, fosters rural communities, and works to end hunger in the United States and internationally.
Newly confirmed USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins revealed that DOGE has been at the agency for "a few weeks", welcomed their efforts, and expected full compliance from USDA teams, while farmers and policymakers raised concerns about the funding freeze.[17] A few farmers expressed their anger on TikTok, one of them worrying about losing his farm.[18]
DOGE actions at the USDA have impacted the United States national response to the 2020–2025 H5N1 outbreak, after staff working on the crisis were summarily fired.[19]
On January 31, about 100 ED employees who had taken required diversity training during Trump's first term were placed on paid administrative leave.[23][24][25]
By February, DOGE had access to data on federal student aid, including the personal financial information on the more than 42 million people who receive student loans from the government.[24][26] In early Feb, DOGE staff fed sensitive data from ED into an AI through Microsoft Azure to cut any spending, including contracts, that is "not essential to operations or required by law."[24]
On February 10, ED researchers and contractors were told to stop work on 169 contracts funded by the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The funding totaled $881 million, including contracts involving student resources that were in-progress. The IES funds research to examine the effectiveness of current education policies and systems. Many contractors involved in maintaining the research database were also terminated. The institute is "all but shut down."[27][28][29]
On February 17, a federal judge allowed DOGE to maintain access to ED data while a privacy lawsuit, filed by representatives of college students, went through the courts.[30] It was reported in the court filing that least one DOGE employee with access to ED's internal systems had not yet completed required ethics and security training.[31]
On February 26, ED stopped accepting and processing all income-driven repayment plans and consolidation applications for at least 3 months. Such plans are designed to keep payments affordable for student borrowers, and provide a path to student loan forgiveness.[32][33]
On March 11, it was reported that ED would lay off "about 50%" of its workforce, about 2,200 workers.[34]
DOGE is planning to replace ED contractors with an AI chatbot to answer questions from students and parents, with future plans to cut support website and call center funding by 80%.[35] ED has claimed that reducing call center funding by 38% could result in a "severe degradation" in services for "students, borrowers, and schools."[36]
DOGE staff now at the Department of Education include a former CEO at an education technology venture capital firm, as well as the former head of engineering at a company that sells ketamine.[36]
The DOE secretaryChris Wright, against guidance of the DOE's General Counsel and chief information officers, allowed Luke Farritor of DOGE to access DOE computer networks.[37] CNN quoted DOE staff in the general counsel and chief information offices as calling Farritor's access a "bad idea", and that "He's not cleared to be in DOE, on our systems."[37]
DOGE gained access to financial systems at HHS as well as extremely restricted medical data related to most Americans in heavily access-controlled systems such as the Healthcare Integrated General Ledger Accounting System (HIGLAS).[40] HIGLAS is described by the Washington Post as "a vast database that touches nearly every corner of American health care", and that restricted staff with access undergo mandatory specialized training for privacy protections under the federal law Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).[40] The Washington Post noted it was unknown if DOGE operatives were HIPAA compliant under federal law.[40]
On March 3, 2025, HHS employees were told they could apply for early retirement over the next ten days. They were also instructed to comply with DOGE's emailed request to list their accomplishments from the past week, but to do so without revealing sensitive information.[41]
The Washington Post reported on February5 that DOGE had sought access to data at the CDC,[40] and that DOGE had gained access to key payment and contracting systems at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).[42] CMS officials as of February6 declined to reveal to what medical and financial records of Americans that Musk had gained access.[43]
On February 26, ProPublica reports that DOGE gained access to a HUD system that contains confidential information about alleged victims of housing discrimination, including victims of domestic violence.[45] Information includes medical records, financial files, documents that may list Social Security numbers and other private information. Records in this database are generally not anonymized.
The Federal Housing Administration within HUD provides insurance for mortgages originated by private lenders for various types of properties, including single-family homes, multifamily rental properties, hospitals, and residential care facilities. FHA mortgage insurance serves to safeguard these private lenders from financial losses.
On February 18, 2025, it was revealed DOGE began to eliminate 50% of the staff of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), beginning with jobs related to FHA insured loans, that overwhelmingly benefit lower-income Americans.[46][47]
On May 18th, all employees at the General Schedule 13-level and below in the Office of Field Policy and Management, the office which supports HUD goals and operational capacity across its regional field offices, will be terminated.[13]
On January31, multiple sources reported that David Lebryk, a top Treasury Department career civil servant, was pushed out after he refused to grant DOGE access to a system that disburses over $5trillion in payments annually, including Social Security, government paychecks and contractor payments. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent granted DOGE access to the system later that day.[49][50][51]The New York Times described it as a possible attempt by Trump to "unilaterally restrict disbursement of money approved for specific purposes by Congress" following his earlier funding freeze.[52][53]
The Financial Times reported on February2 that Musk responded to an X post by former Trump national security advisor Michael Flynn, who posted a spreadsheet image purportedly showing federal grant payments to Global Refuge, a faith-based charity that provides services to legal migrants. Without citing evidence, Flynn asserted there was a money laundering operation involved, and that there were many other organizations "cashing in on our hard-earned money".[54] Musk replied that DOGE "is rapidly shutting down these illegal payments".[55] He later asserted that "career Treasury officials are breaking the law every hour of every day by approving payments that are fraudulent or do not match the funding laws passed by Congress".[56]
On February4, a Treasury Department official wrote to federal lawmakers that a DOGE agent, Tom Krause (who is also CEO of Citrix Systems) was restricted to "read-only" access to the Treasury payments system, preventing "payments for obligations such as Social Security and Medicare to be delayed or re-routed", though Wired reported that another member of Musk's team, Marko Elez, had acquired unrestricted access to some Treasury systems, and had been making "extensive changes" to the codebase of the payments system, with limited supervision. Democratic senator Ron Wyden, ranking member of the finance committee to whom the letter was sent, said it "reeks of a cover-up".[57][58][59][60] Senior Treasury officials stated in February 11 federal court filings that the department had "mistakenly" and "briefly" granted Elez "read-write" access enabling him to alter the system;[61] the Trump administration said in its court filings that an internal investigation had showed Elez did not take unauthorized actions despite being able.[62]
"One of them now has direct access to the US Treasury computer system responsible for virtually all government payments. That is, taxpayers' tax returns, civil servants' salaries. That's billions of dollars that this young engineer can now manage, under the sole supervision of Elon Musk."[63]
On February5, NBC News reported that attorneys for the Justice Department had agreed to temporarily restrict staffers associated with DOGE from accessing information with the Treasury Department. This change came after a lawsuit was filed by a group of union members and retirees against the Treasury Department.[64] This left Elez and Krause in place, but with a restriction not to disclose information to anyone outside the Treasury. Elez resigned on February6 after The Wall Street Journal reported on deleted social media posts where he explicitly identified himself as a racist and advocated for eugenics and against inter-ethnic marriage.[65]
A coalition of nineteen states, mostly Democratic-led, filed suit in a Manhattan federal court on February 7 seeking to stop DOGE from accessing the payments system.[66] Hours later, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting DOGE from accessing data on the payment system and ordered any data downloaded by unauthorized people since January 20 to be destroyed. The judge scheduled a hearing for February 14.[67] The judge in that hearing extended the injunction pending a later decision and a final ruling, which might take months.[68]
DOGE said in February that it had discovered a tracking code was often missing in Treasury payments, rendering about $4.7 trillion in payments nearly impossible to trace. That figure would represent nearly 70% of total 2024 federal spending.[69] Musk said he was told that over $100 billion in entitlements payments a year were being made without a Social Security number or a temporary identification number, and he was told that about $50 billion was "unequivocal and obvious fraud."[70]
DOGE began efforts to gain physical access to the United States Bullion Depository at Fort Knox.[71] As of 31 July 2020, Fort Knox holds 147.34 million troy ounces (4,583 metric tons) of gold reserves with a market value of US $290.9 billion, representing 56.35% of the gold reserves of the United States.[72][73][needs update] Musk reportedly insisted on a "live video walkthrough" of the secure United States Army facility.[71] Non-authorized personnel have only been given access to the gold depository three times in history, in 1943 for Franklin D. Roosevelt, in 1974 for members of Congress, and in 2017 for then-Treasury SecretarySteven Mnuchin and another Congressional delegation.[71]
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code. Their duties include providing tax assistance to taxpayers; pursuing and resolving instances of erroneous or fraudulent tax filings; and overseeing various benefits programs, including the Affordable Care Act.
On February 13, Sen. Ron Wyden announced that DOGE was at the IRS; an email was sent to the agency beforehand, asking officers to identify all "non-essential" contracts for termination.[74] CNN reports that Gavin Kliger visited the agency and made a series of requests.[75] Sources say that they included enforcement, personnel footprint, and extensive system access.[76] Earlier, Musk claimed to have "deleted" the group behind the Direct File pilot, whereas the page to file tax returns is still online and operational.[77]
By February 16, DOGE was seeking access to a highly sensitive and tightly controlled IRS system containing taxpayer information. Kliger would be named a senior advisor to the acting IRS commissioner.[78][79][80]
6,700 probationary employees have been fired from the IRS, per order by Trump and DOGE.[81]
The Department of Veterans Affairs provides lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans. Other VA benefits include disability compensation, vocational rehabilitation, education assistance, home loans, and life insurance.
On February5, 2025, it was disclosed the DOGE operatives had accessed computer databases and medical records at the Department of Veterans Affairs, with internal VA reports that DOGE was "data mining" disability compensation and benefits of United States Armed Forcesmilitary veterans.[82]
On February 12, Grist reported that the Trump administration started to shrink the Environment Protection Agency (EPA);[83] nearly 170 employees at the EPA's Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights were placed on paid administrative leave.[84]
During a cabinet meeting, President Trump said he expected 65% of the EPA workforce, nearly 11,000 employees, would be let go. Subsequently EPA and Whitehouse spokespeople declined to reinforce this statement.[13] EPA staff members have been directed to submit to DOGE a one-page justification of any expense over $50,000 between 3 and 6 pm Eastern time, in addition to other paperwork normally used for expenses.[85]
"Staffing decisions should be based on an individual agency's mission-critical needs. To do otherwise is dangerous when it comes to public safety. And it is especially unconscionable in the aftermath of three deadly aircraft accidents in the past month."[87]
Musk's SpaceX staff appeared at the FAA's Air Traffic Control System Command Center on February 17, 2025, and Sean Duffy confirmed that per Donald Trump, Musk's staff would be in control of America's air traffic control systems.[88]The Independent made note of ongoing fines, conflicts and litigation between Musk and the FAA, creating conflicts of interest for Musk.[88]
On February 11, Musk incited Republican outrage by posting on X about Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding of migrant shelter hotels in New York City. He said DOGE had discovered the funding, and falsely asserted that the funds were intended for disaster relief but had been illegally redirected to house migrants in "luxury hotels". The funds had been appropriated by Congress in 2024 under FEMA's "Shelter and Services Program" created by Congress in 2023, and they are separate from disaster relief funds.[89][90][91]
Musk's false allegation led the Department of Homeland Security to fire four FEMA employees that day, including the CFO, alleging they were "deep state activists". The next day, homeland security secretaryKristi Noem said she had "clawed back the full payment that FEMA deep state activists unilaterally gave to NYC migrant hotels". The city comptroller confirmed that $80 million had been withdrawn from the city's bank account.[89][90][91]
The General Services Administration helps manage and support the basic functioning of other federal agencies, including managing federal real estate and technology.
At the end of January, Musk's group took over GSA. Wired magazine reported "an effort to use IT credentials from the Executive Office of the President to access GSA laptops and internal GSA infrastructure".[92] Workers at GSA's Technology Transformation Services (TTS) were summoned to meetings with young, inexperienced engineers who recently worked at Musk's companies.[2] In the meetings, the TTS employees were required to present and defend code they had written. Some of the interviewers did not have government email addresses and refused to give their names.[93] A Musk employee, Thomas Shedd, was appointed to lead TTS. In a TTS all-hands meeting on February 3, Shedd announced that GSA would now operate "like a startup software company", switching to an "AI-first strategy" including writing software with "AI coding agents".[94][95] Shedd told TTS employees to expect a reduction in staff.[96] In mid-February, GSA laid off dozens of TTS employees, including technical staff in the Presidential Innovation Fellows and U.S. Digital Corps programs.[96]
On February 18, ProPublica reported that Stephen Ehikian, the new acting administrator of GSA, has appointed Frank Schuler as senior adviser.[97] While Schuler has been coordinating with DOGE team member Nate Cavanaugh, his employment status remains unknown.[97] Schuler has for years been promoting and profiting from "syndicated conservation easements", a tax-shelter scheme that financial authorities tried for years to shut down. [98] Two weeks after Stephen Ehikian was appointed to head GSA, his brother Brad Ehikian submitted a bid to buy a 17-acre facility in Silicon Valley from GSA at a large discount. The GSA's inspector general is investigating "allegations of fraud, waste, abuse, and misconduct" in the attempted purchase.[99]
Also on February 18, a long-time GSA employee resigned rather than be forced to give Thomas Shedd administrator access to Notify.gov, a government text message service that contains sensitive personal data for members of the public.[100] It could have been a violation of the Federal Information Security Modernization Act to grant Shedd this access without a written justification and an update to the program's security plan; the GSA employee was "instructed to skip that process" by Shedd.[101]
On March 1, the entire 18F office was eliminated "under direction from the White House",[102] weeks after Elon Musk claimed the "group was deleted."[103]
Musk and DOGE have also focused on the Public Building Service (PBS) as they target offices to RIF. 600 employees were laid off on March 3rd and on March 5th, in one of PBS regions, RIF notices were sent to 165 out of 178 employees.[13]
RIF notices have also been sent to some employees within the Office of Human Resources and the Office of Customer Experience.[13]
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
The National Archives and Records Administration is charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It is also tasked with increasing public access to those documents that make up the National Archives.
404 Media reported that, at an all-hands meeting of all NARA employees on February4, Deputy Director Jay Boskano stated that the agency had not received "any requests" from DOGE, that DOGE is not currently "looking to gain access" to National Archives systems, and stated there may be "unique opportunities to work with DOGE" to benefit the National Archives in the future.[104]
On February 12, DOGE cut funding to NED by blocking disbursement from the Department of Treasury, causing significant disruptions to the organization.[105][106][107] The same day, the NED informed the organizations it funds that it would suspend payments immediately. Additionally, organizations supported by NED started laying off staff and cutting expenditures.[105][107]The Free Press believes that dismantling the NED would symbolise a momentous change in US foreign policy, undermining the idea that democratic ideals foster US global strength and influence, and that the Trump administration therefore no longer believes that promoting democracy in the world is in the national interest.[108]
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
ABC News reported on February6 that DOGE operatives had gained access to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) computer systems. Staff from the NOAA Information Technology group and the Department of Commerce attempted to keep the operatives from the systems according to security protocols, but the operatives defied authorized security staff and forcefully entered the facilities.[109] Two Democratic Congress members characterized DOGE's presence in NOAA systems as "hackers". NOAA staff noted that the actions of the operatives could directly cause risk to human life by hindering NOAA and National Weather Service operations.[110][109] ABC also reported that operatives were also looking for anything connected to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) on bulletin boards and were inspecting bathroom signs to ensure compliance with Trump's executive orders.[110]
On February 17, 2025, DOGE released 1,127 federal contracts spanning 39 federal departments and agencies, which included several NOAA contracts.[111] DOGE announced the "deobligation" of $1,073,496 from the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research's (OAR) Uncrewed Systems Research Transition Office (UxSRTO) that was for "scientific, engineering, and technical support".[112]
On February 27, The Hill reported that the firing of probationary employees has begun.[113]
As of February 28, the landing page of the NOAA External Affairs website reads: "Due to the recent layoffs at NOAA, all members of the External Affairs team were relieved of their duties."[114]
On February 13, 350 NNSA employees who secure and guard America's nuclear arsenal, including about 100 employees of Pantex, the primary United States nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly facility,[115][116] were fired due to DOGE.[117] The next day, all but 28 of those firings were rescinded by NNSA acting director Teresa Robbins.[117]
The Office of Personnel Management manages the United States federal civil service, providing federal human resources policy and supports healthcare, life insurance and retirement benefits for federal government employees, retirees, and their dependents.
Musk's team seized control of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on January20.[118] They moved sofa beds into the fifth-floor director's office of the agency's headquarters. Musk's aides locked OPM workers out of computer systems which contain personally identifying information of millions of federal employees.[118]
After the takeover of OPM, federal employees across the country received emails asking them to turn in colleagues working on diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) initiatives to OPM via a "DEIAtruth" email address.[119]
On February 4, two anonymous federal employees filed suit in federal court alleging the DOGE team had unlawfully installed a private server on the OPM network, seeking a restraining order to have it removed.[120] On February 22, an email OPM's domain was sent to all federal employees asking what they accomplished in the past week. Several departments have instructed their employees to not respond to the email.[121]
On February 13, all probationary staff at OPM (about 100 people) were "fired on a conference call."[122]
On February 21, OPM laid off nearly the entirety of the Office of Procurement Operations (57 employees). It was claimed that the functions of the office would be transferred to the General Services Administration. The office supported functions across the federal government which included "human resources, training, communications, retirements and separations and health insurance benefits.[123]
In late February 2025, Employees in OPM's Human Capital Data Management and Modernization office, it's privacy, Chief Technology Office and Freedom of Information Act office were also subject to RIFs, although some employees were spared.[13]
On the weekend of February 17, acting head of SSA Michelle King resigned after denying DOGE staffers access to private financial records of American citizens and Social Security recipients.[124]
With Trump in the Oval Office days earlier, Musk asserted the SSA database included beneficiaries aged 150 years, later claiming that more than a million were aged 150 to 159, and dead people were collecting payments. Musk said the SSA could be "the biggest fraud in history." DOGE had misunderstood certain aspects of SSA operations, including how birth dates are handled on the antiquated COBOL-based computer system. Former SSA commissioner Martin O'Malley said the Musk allegations were false.[125][126][127]
Nancy Altman, of advocacy group Social Security Works, said of the data access, "If there is an evil intent to punish perceived enemies, someone could erase your earnings record, making it impossible to collect the Social Security and Medicare benefits you have earned."[128]
On February 25, 2025, SSA acting commissioner Leland Dudek announced that the agency was closing its Office of Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity, reassigning its statutory responsibilities to other offices.[129][130] This office was closed by early March.[13]
SSA also closed its Office of Transformation as of early March.[13]
SSA acting Administrator Leland Dudek plans to lay off 7,000 employees in total.[13]
DOGE initiated changes to the budget that impacted the National Explosives Detection Canine Team Program the same week that Trump celebrated K9 Veterans Day; vet visits and food supplies had been suspended.[131]
DOGE attempted to gain access to the building housing the United States Institute of Peace to install a new president on 14 March, and again on 17 March at which time both USIP and DOGE called the police. There was a day-long standoff at the building, after which police removed president George Moose from the building. Kenneth Jackson was appointed in his place by three remaining board members after the majority of board members were fired. USIP is not a government agency, but a think tank funded by Congress.[133]
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