The Trump resistance movement has resumed. Elon Musk has been added to the resist list. Why? Because he is monitoring government waste, fraud and abuse. Who could be surprised that Donald Trump is moving ahead with the main plank in his platform of government reform? The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was created by Executive Order to root out waste, fraud and inefficiency and establish new standards. Elon Musk has been appointed to make the deep dive into the 450-plus government agencies and determine how government can operate more efficiently. Who could complain about that? Seventy-percent of Americans approve, but some disapprove, mainly over dislike of President Trump.
Musk and team have emersed themselves in fact-finding and here are some of their findings: Musk reports on his social platform, X, that the Social Security (SSA) data base contains millions of supercentenarians. Over 12 million people eligible for benefits are over 120, according to Musk. Over 17 million are reported to be over 100 and still alive. More than 1000 are listed as being between 220 and 229 years old. The oldest person is listed as being 360. The SSA data base reports the number of eligible recipients is 398 million, yet the Census Bureau estimates the US population to be 341 million. The Government Accountability Office reports $247 Billion in improper payments from 82 programs and they are just beginning to count. DOGE has found $4.7 trillion in Treasury disbursements, which have no tracking code, making the payments nearly impossible to trace. The Congressional Budget Office reveals $175 billion in earmarks for illegal aliens through 2034.
These are just preliminary figures and only a small fraction of initial findings. Some may be accounted for, but at best, the findings show sloppy accounting, at worst, waste and fraud. Our government is broken and broke. Over 70 lawsuits have been filed to stop DOGE. Resistance groups rallied across the US on President’s Day, protesting Trump and Musk. Why are some against bring government spending to light? The US has a national debt of $36 trillion which is $102,000 per citizen. Annual interest owed on this debt is greater than our annual defense budget.
Democrat attorneys general have filed lawsuits in federal courts to stop DOGE from interfering in status quo. Federal Judge John McConnell of Rhode Island, ordered payments to continue to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), while he concealed the fact his wife’s NGO is a recipient of USAID grants. He should have recused himself. Ruling in favor of DOGE, Federal Judge Tanya Chutkan declined a request by 14 states to block DOGE from accessing data at seven federal agencies, allowing efforts to reduce the federal work force to continue. Other rulings have allowed DODE to look at the Departments of Education and Labor.
This should not be a partisan issue. Let the light shine and truth be known. The resist movement’s issue is the power of the president to impound payments appropriated by Congress. Presidents from Thomas Jefferson to Richard Nixon have used impoundment to prevent improper spending, but the presidential power of Impoundment was removed in 1974. A president may propose rescission on specific funds, but Congress is not required to act and mostly ignores recission requests.
Congress dictates spending, but the president has clear authority to audit, and reorder government business. We are awaiting a string of answers.
On our local level, audits are required by ordinance and law. Why are they always late? Are our city and county treasurers incompetent? Are independent auditors not able to get the job done? Continual delays leave taxpayers to question malfeasance by elected officials.
Following the money at Western New Mexico University in Silver City, President Joseph Shepard has been accused by the State Auditor of possible corruption and wasteful spending and improper use of public funds, in the amount of $363,000. Shepard resigned this January, but was given a $1.9 million severance and services package, by the college regents. Governor Lujan Grisham has asked for the resignations of those regents for failing to uphold their fiduciary responsibility, stating “a clean slate is needed.”
Cronyism has long been the practice and often problem among our politicians. Governor Grisham has just appointed her brother, Greg Lujan as student regent at Highlands University in Las Vegas. A bill was introduced in our current session to provide state review of college executives, but was tabled by the Senate Education Committee. All these actions continue to foster distrust of public officials. Where fiduciary responsibilities are ignored and accounts go unaudited, money tends to go astray.
President Trump was reelected to rewrite the rules of American governance. Seventy-percent of us favor DOGE. It is time to take note of those opposing discovery of waste, fraud and abuse and ask “why.”
Tom Wright is an El Rito Media investor.