Ron Wyden Accuses Trump Social Security Nominee Of Lying About DOGE Contacts
Source: Huff Post
Mar 25, 2025, 01:09 PM EDT | Updated 2 hours ago
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Social Security Administration said at his confirmation hearing Tuesday that he has not been in close contact with the DOGE minions making controversial changes at the agency. A whistleblower statement strongly suggests otherwise. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) asked Frank Bisignano, the Wall Street executive Trump tapped for commissioner of Social Security, if he’d had contact with affiliates of billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, the team that’s been dismantling agencies and firing workers throughout the federal government.
“My first question is, between the time you were nominated and today, were you involved in discussions about DOGE or any of the operations, personnel or management decisions of those working in Social Security?” “No, sir,” Bisignano said. “That sounds like a reassuring response, but unfortunately, it’s not true,” Wyden said, adding that an agency whistleblower had provided a statement describing frequent contacts between Bisignano and DOGE affiliates.
The Social Security Administration in recent weeks has announced layoffs, buyouts, the consolidation of internal bureaucracies and a dramatic change to telephone service for members of the public starting next week. Leland Dudek, the agency’s acting commissioner, has said he’s making the changes at the direction of the White House. Bisignano’s denial seemed like an effort to distance himself from the changes, but Wyden said he was lying, pointing to the whistleblower statement.
“I am aware of numerous contacts between Mr. Bisignano made with the agency since his nomination that have given me cause for question,” the unnamed whistleblower wrote in a March 24 statement provided by Wyden’s office. “While Mr. Bisignano was the unconfirmed nominee to lead the Social Security Administration, he frequently spoke with senior SSA executives and was personally briefed on key SSA operations, personnel and management decisions.”
Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/frank-bisignano-social-security-doge_n_67e2d1dee4b09c922897d9f1
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