In the first few minutes of the Trump presidency, Elon Musk’s programmers made a surprise incursion into a key personnel agency. Since then, DOGE programmers operating in the shadows have burrowed into systems across the government, resulting in thousands of layoffs. WSJ’s Scott Patterson explains how DOGE has entered vast parts of the federal bureaucracy. Further Reading: -Inside DOGE’s Clash With the Federal Workforce -DOGE Claims It Has Saved Billions. See Where. Further Listening: -Trump 2.0: The Musk-Trump Bromance -Inside USAID as Elon Musk and DOGE Ripped It Apart Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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At President Trump's first cabinet meeting on Wednesday, there was a familiar face standing up front wearing a black MAGA hat and a T-shirt that read tech support.
I actually just call myself a humble tech support here because this is actually, as crazy as it sounds, that is almost a literal description of the work that the Doge team is doing.
Elon Musk was there to tell the cabinet about the work that DOGE, or the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, has been doing. He said they're helping to fix out-of-date computer systems as part of his goal to reduce the national deficit.
If we don't do this, America will go bankrupt. That's why it has to be done.
Whether or not that prediction is true, DOGE is moving fast to cut spending and slash the federal government.
shutting down USAID. The CFPB. About 5% of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are being let go. Already, more than 200 have been fired from FEMA, around 400 from the Federal Aviation Administration, and more than 1,000 from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Given all that Doge has done in just a few weeks, the Wall Street Journal wanted to get inside exactly how this new pseudo-agency has been operating. And our colleagues found a scorched earth approach that is incredibly secretive, quickly takes control of government data, and that tests the limits of what's legal. Welcome to The Journal, our show about money, business, and power.
I'm Kate Leinbaugh. It's Friday, February 28th. Coming up on the show, behind the scenes of Doge's campaign to gut the federal government.
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