Lights out for Elon Musk’s DOGE
DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, promised huge savings. With eight months left on its charter, it has now been dissolved.
On the Monday, December 1, 2025 episode of The Excerpt podcast: Elon Musk’s DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, has been dismantled with eight months still left on its charter. USA TODAY Politics Reporter Kathryn Palmer joins USA TODAY’s The Excerpt to break down its demise.
Hit play on the player below to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript beneath it. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.
Podcasts: True crime, in-depth interviews and more USA TODAY podcasts right here
Dana Taylor:
After less than a year, the Department of Government Efficiency, better known as DOGE, is done. The controversial cost-cutting initiative was initially led by the equally controversial tech billionaire, Elon Musk. Did DOGE succeed in what it set out to do?
Hello and welcome to USA Today’s The Excerpt. I’m Dana Taylor. Today is Monday, December 1st, 2025.
While much has been made of the steep cuts in the number of federal employees, there was also what Musk called a mandate from President Donald Trump to, “delete the mountain,” of government regulations and remake the government with AI. Here to dive into all things DOGE is USA Today Politics Reporter Kathryn Palmer. It’s good to have you back, Kathryn.
Kathryn Palmer:
Thanks so much for having me.
Dana Taylor:
Now, I asked if DOGE succeeded in what it set out to do, but before we get to that, can you give me an idea of the scope of what President Trump tasked the Department of Government Efficiency with doing?
Kathryn Palmer:
Kind of stepping back, rewinding all the way to 2024, this agency and this effort was really born out of this bromance between Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk. The pair used to be very tight. Musk was one of Trump’s biggest campaign bankrollers. He often appeared in some campaign events with him. And in this closening relationship between the two, you could see that there was this connection that they shared over a complaint, which has been common among MAGA and with Republicans, that the federal government is too large. It’s too bloated, it is inefficient.
So last year, as the pair are getting closer, they’re finding commonalities, Musk is sidling up more to the campaign, you see the pair are tossing back this idea of this agency. Even the name itself is very Musk coded, DOGE after the meme cryptocurrency coin, Dogecoin. So this agency was created in January. It was an executive order, and what it essentially did is it codified and organized this effort that the pair were talking about and really agreeing on to slash government waste. And in this executive order, it said this body, this agency, which was created by refashioning an executive agency that already existed, was to eliminate,…
Read More: DOGE is done. What did the agency accomplish?
