Will DOGE Do This? Famed Economist Breaks Down How to Take a Sledgehammer to the Deep State
If there’s been one bit of news out of the nascent Trump 47 administration that’s being greeted with excitement — and equal amounts of concern — among conservatives, it’s the new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
The excitement comes from the fact that President-elect Donald Trump sees efficiency and the curbing of big government as a priority in his second term. Equal excitement is the dual heads of it: two CEOs with some knowledge of the political sphere, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
But DOGE doesn’t exactly have a mandate to carry out its own suggestions; it’s a proposed presidential advisory commission, whose advice could just be filed away deep in a locked cabinet in the unlit, disused basement lavatory of a government building with a sign saying “Beware of the Leopard” on the door. (Geek points for those of you who get that reference.)
Furthermore, just how serious this commission is remains to be seen. Yes, both Musk and Ramaswamy have put their careers on the line to make a political stand, and Musk in particular has put serious pressure on Republicans to reject a larded-up continuing resolution to keep the government open. However, the fact that DOGE’s acronym itself is a meme — so seldom a good sign when Elon is involved, it must be noted — makes one wonder whether this is just another way for Republicans to make empty promises to slash big government while sustaining it through compromises and backsliding.
Thus, if DOGE is going to be effective, it’s going to have to be brutal. Like, Milton Friedman brutal.
