DOGE cuts will 'in all probability' increase the US deficit -- by a lot: Report

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: The Independent

Saturday 29 March 2025 01:27 EDT



The grant, contract and budget cuts in federal agencies, along with the crippling reductions of tens of thousands of government jobs, will “in all probability” end up increasing (by a lot), rather than decreasing the nation’s deficit, which has been the stated intent, notes a new report.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) hatchet man Elon Musk initially boasted that he would carve $2 trillion out of government spending — even the Trump administration works to slash the nation’s income via tax cuts that will largely accrue to the wealthy by $4.5 trillion. (The Republicans are also planning to increase military spending by $150 billion over the next five years.) Now Musk is claiming he may reach half of that goal — $1 trillion in cuts — by the end of the year..

It’s impossible to know what has actually already been cut since Musk’s “receipts” have been relentlessly riddled with significant errors that all make it look as if he has saved far more than he actually has. Jessica Riedl, a budget expert at the Manhattan Institute, recently estimated the actual savings so far at about $2 billion — one-tenth of 1 percent of Musk’s original goal of $2 trillion, The Atlantic noted in a report Friday. Prediction markets currently expect a grand total of $1 billion in savings.

Many of the cuts will actually cost, including via the taxpayer salaries going to an army of lawyers from the Department of Justice battling a cascade of court cases against the government’s dismantling that many judges have already said appears to be illegal. Damages from any illegal firings are likely also to be extremely pricey, along with buyouts and paying people on leave, who are doing absolutely no work for full salary just so Donald Trump can keep them out of the office.

Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/doge-increase-deficit-b2723712.html

[BoRaGard]

1. "Ha ha. US suckers and losers. Ha ha." - King Krasnov & Billionaire Bros (R)

[Bengus81]

2. Come up with more of those phony $8 billion cuts without being outed for the "mistake"

and then maybe in YOUR warped fucking mind you'll get the total $$ amount of cuts you and the filthy rich want.

[Biophilic]

3. But, than, cutting the deficit probably wasn't really their actual goal.

Destroying the government was and is their goal.

[erronis]

19. Exactly. Ever since we understoon putin controlled trump this was the obvious goal.

[littlemissmartypants]

20. Bingo! ...

That and robbing the Treasury.

[surfered]

4. And the GOP knows it as their budget includes raising the debt ceiling $4 trillion

[dutch777]

5. No doubt plus lower cash flow from government pushes economy toward recession. Problem is....

...they will diddle the accounting to look favorable and outsiders will have trouble getting accurate numbers to do any sort of forensic audit. To the point of the last paragraph, DOJ needing an army of lawyers to defend from all the lawsuits DOGE actions are spurning, this is a weak spot to capitalize on. Add more and more suits and tie up Musk et. al. with having to be deposed and testifying as much as possible. Make him just sleep at DOJ. Anything that distracts their focus and eats up their time so they get less done and it all takes longer.

[aggiesal]

15. Unfortunately the DOJ is compromised and ...

AG Blondi will never prosecute anything that will compromise what Meirda47 & Mu$krat are doing and making them look bad.
You're correct about everything you're advocating, but we will have to wait until there is a (D) Congress and a (D) in the WH, who doesn't believe that we have to look forward and not letigate the past.

[twodogsbarking]

6. When they bring in an efficiency expert you know you are fucked.

[aggiesal]

16. They're literally the Bobs from movie Office Space. n/t

[Dr. T]

18. I worked at GE for 25 years.

They grew their own efficiency experts who would walk in a cut 10% of the workforce. The more experienced workers with the higher salaries were targeted. The end results showed up in product quality, which dropped like a rock.

[UpInArms]

7. Anyone who understands economics knows this

Now we have “laid off” workers collecting salaries, bonus buyout packages … no actual work being done, food rotting in ports, chaos in every corner, lawyers, lawsuits … the list is endless … and this doesn’t even go to the payments to unqualified people who are accessing private data …

[bucolic_frolic]

8. He's making the US government into Twitter

We are so screwed. And no one has any power to stop it. That's what gets me. Theft in progress and no accountability.

[GiqueCee]

10. Send a thank you note...

... to John Roberts and the five skidmarks that helped him engineer the total immunity Trump now enjoys. There's your precious "legacy", Roberts, you irredeemable asshole.

[GiqueCee]

9. Putin is watching...

... this clusterfuck of a shitshow, and laughing his ass off. This is exactly what he's been working toward for decades. I hope all his giggling gives him a heart-orectomy.

[Turbineguy]

11. We save money no matter how much it costs!

I worked for a company like that once. They went bankrupt.

We have exceeded our goal of zero improvement by a wide margin!

[republianmushroom]

12. Figures.

[twodogsbarking]

13. "In all probability"

[MLWR]

14. Since the Muskrat started with his stupid chainsaw,

I have been saying over and over, that Comrade Krasnov and his pet muskrat along with the teenage mutant ninja techies will end up costing us, the taxpayers multiple times what they are "saving" us.

[RazorbackExpat]

17. That was the plan all along

I effin hate these people

[Karasu]

21. Thus defeating the entire fucking supposed "point" of its "existence." Abolish this fictional department fucking NOW.