By Ron Paul | Source
News this week that Elon Musk will soon be departing his “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) is a grim reminder of what happens when you challenge big spending DC. Unfortunately, the lesson once again is that when you challenge the empire, the empire eventually strikes back.
President Trump rode into office with the help of Elon Musk’s ambitious plan to cut two trillion dollars in spending and slash useless and bloated government bureaucracies. Opinion polls demonstrated the huge popularity of the “Department.” Americans were excited when DOGE came to DC.
The exposure of the real harm being done to the country by agencies like USAID and others reinforced the idea that much of the “Federal bureaucracy” was simply not needed. Although Musk became a figure of hate for the entrenched special interests, to the large chunk of America forced to pay for Washington’s excesses he became a hero.
Many in Congress, seeing its popularity, actively embraced DOGE. Suddenly those who helped us rack up 37 trillion in debt were talking about making huge cuts and posing for photos with Musk.
Unfortunately, after the photos were taken and the hoopla had died down, Congress returned to doing what it usually does: nothing. There is no way for a DOGE to succeed without the Legislative Branch enshrining those cuts in legislation. But when the massive “Big Beautiful” spending bill was introduced, the spending cuts were nowhere to be found.
In the end it was the Beltway addiction to the global US military empire that may have hammered the final nail in DOGE’s coffin. The “Big Beautiful” spending bill actually increased military spending even after President Trump hinted that a 50 percent cut was possible. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth bragged about presiding over the “first” trillion-dollar defense budget. Starting a war on Yemen – at over a billion dollars a month – and saber rattling over Iran are the most obvious evidence that the empire has struck back. And of course the DC hawks want to “confront” China.
This isn’t the first time a populist, popular movement to tame the Beltway beast was embraced then defeated by that same beast. The “Tea Party” movement was launched in December, 2007, with volunteers supporting my 2008 Presidential campaign holding a record-breaking 24 hour “money bomb” on the anniversary of the 1773 Boston Tea Party.
Americans sick of deficit spending, over-reaching government, and the costly and counterproductive US military empire overseas, joined together to demand change. The “money bomb” success got Washington’s attention – money is the lifeblood of the political class – and before too long politicians of all stripes declared themselves to be part of the “Tea Party.”
They loved the popularity of associating themselves with the “Tea Party.” But actually cutting government? Not so much.
The first thing these newly-minted “Tea Party” members rejected was our demand for an end to the unsustainable, bloated military budget and our aggressive foreign policy. Eventually they backed away from other spending restrictions and within a few years the “brand” was diluted and tossed away.
What is the lesson here? Is it all futile? Hardly. The popularity of DOGE shows that Americans still want a much smaller government. That is great news, and the country owes a debt of gratitude to Elon for reminding us of this. But until Americans elect Representatives who have the courage to follow through beyond photo-ops, we will sadly continue down the path toward bankruptcy and collapse.
SwanDove, Roz & Others Who Don’t Get It –
There was & is NO WAY the Federal Gov’t Swamp was going to be drained via a slow, methodical surgical method. <– Fantasy.
And why is this? Because the Deep State DEFTLY booby-trapped the entire Fed Gov't Colossus — if there to be an obviously necessary downsizing — to take down FIRST the honest, hard-working government employee population (about ~20% of it), who actually ARE competent & DO serve the American people.
But it turns out that, just like Musk found at Twitter, DOGE is finding that ~80 PERCENT of the Fed workers are either corrupt and/complicit and/or incompetent and/or WOKE and/or unnecessary.
Of course, the complicit Deep State media is going to portray the Swamp-draining as cruel. What they hide in the process is that the Swamp has been chronically-cruel to & neglectful of the U.S. taxpayers (who are the customers footing their bill) for YEARS & YEARS.
In short, the VAST MAJORITY of the current federal workforce SERVE THEMSELVES; NOT the interests of the American people.
————
Re the notion that auditing Social Security, and taking action on the fraud involved, is going to disrupt or break Social Security is absurd.
Prez Trump's Administration, per the DOGE findings, will break THIS corrupt Social Security Administration.
And this requisite break/purge will require the small inconvenience to all Social Security benefits recipients, to logon & AUTHENTICATE their benefits package, to just validate they are alive & are the rightful benefactors. (<— WOW! How cruel! 😉
~
Ooh, I forgot to cite a VERY, VERY important Cabinet member, who will not just cut out the corruption, fraud & all of the Swamp creatures in his department, but will also MAHA: Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
His mission might also take a little time; likely more time than the others. But, bye-bye: C0v1d shots, mandatory vaxxxine shots of ANY kind, autism origins, the incestuous relationship between HHS/NIH/CDC/NAID & the Pharmacological Industrial Complex, cancer-causing anything, fluoride in our water, chemtrails in our skies, GMOs of any kind in our foods, and more..
~
Agreed to a T, Vox.
Any cut to needy citizens is perceived, all monies for true public aid, was really kickback money.
Financially, I’m hanging on by a claw, too.
It’ll get better. But not overnight, sadly. I’m looking forward to the solar flash, personally. 💥
Elon might be leaving DOGE. But DOGE is not leaving. Oh no.. quite the opposite & will be around for QUITE awhile….
Musk has done his work. He has set up the DOGE team & infrastructure, which will continue to grow, infiltrate & audit the entire U.S. gov’t behemoth. Elon will certainly retain an “advisory role” from anywhere.
And he is handing off the next phase of the DOGE mission to Prez Trump’s very capable Cabinet members, who now have the proof & evidence to EXECUTE the Swamp Draining. As they now have their very-clear Trump/DOGE marching orders.
Don’t know where Ron Paul is coming from***, but he’s WRONG in his thesis here.
The real issue facing Trump 2.0 now, is not a flailing DOGE, but a brand-new war front: Corrupt, Deep State judges attempting to stymie Trump’s mission & agenda, santioned by…um…the MAJORITY of United States citizens.
So Grazie, Elon !
And Go Go JDV, Wiles, Rubio, Hegseth, Bessent, Bondi, Patel, Gabbard, Ratcliffe, Lutnick, Burgum, Zeldin, Leavitt, Dhillon, Bongino, Levin, S. Miller, and all the other Trump/DOGE-enabled MAGA Superstars.
(***Perhaps Ron Paul has a lil’ bit of..uh..envy, shall we say? Since he NEVER came close in his long political career, to even a FRACTION of what Elon Musk has achieved in a MATTER OF WEEKS.)
~
I totally agree about our bloated Military spending!
But actually, millions of American citizens now loathe Elon/DOGE because he wielded a chainsaw rather than a scalpel to vital programs and agencies – all to preserve massive tax cuts mainly benefitting the wealthiest corporations and individuals.
Gutted is our ability to protect the environment (Gaia) from rapacious industries; feed impoverished children and the elderly; care for vets; provide food safety inspections, and weather information that warns us about hurricanes and tornadoes; manage air safety; research pediatric cancer; go after corporate tax cheats at the IRS; make Social Security harder for seniors to navigate…
The list goes on and on.
Meanwhile, Trump costs us taxpayers over $3 million dollars each weekend when he jets to one of his golf resorts ( Air Force One + a separate military transport plane for his armored cars, etc.) while the richest man in the world rampages through our lives.
It’s not just the Empire striking back – it’s ordinary Americans, too!
Oops, I meant – Elon/DOGE cuts are making it harder for seniors to navigate Social Security (to access their benefits). Shame on him!
U are the solution Dr. Ron Paul! Americans are fed up with 2 party politics!
Just do a UNIParty that teaches and lives THE GOLDEN RULE….Mint Funds
with a $180,000 TRILLION DOLLAR COINS IN PLATINUM…TODAY, OK DR?
DOGE uncovered waste. Yeah. But did it dare to DOGE the super-fat military waste? Did it dare uncover the trillions wasted by military contractors, et al? No. It went after – for the most part – ordinary workers in government. Big Ole Deal. The REAL deal, the fat octi-armed monster of the DoD was left intact. What do you say about that Mr. Paul.