One of the most closely watched efforts introduced by Donald Trump upon his return to the White House is undeniably DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Two of Trump’s closest allies – multi-billionaire Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur turned politician and former presidential candidate – will lead the new body.
DOGE is an advisory group rather than a federal ministry. Musk and Ramaswamy work “pro bono” as external private experts. They aim to reduce all “unnecessary costs and regulations”, which will result in a more streamlined and efficient administration.
They pledge to restructure some of the key federal agencies, or even liquidate them altogether.
Ramaswami vows to shut down the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Department of Education.
Musk is trying to dismantle the entire bureaucracy and promises overall cuts of about $2 trillion, or about a third of the federal government’s annual budget.
In a first glimpse of what will happen when DOGE is operational, last month the power duo blocked a bipartisan spending bill in Congress by taking to social media, urging taxpayers to help “stop the theft” and threatening lawmakers with primary challenges. if they voted for it.
From a legal perspective, however, there could be big hurdles on the horizon. “Despite its official name, the Department of Government Effectiveness will be purely advisory in nature,” notes Caleb Burns, attorney at Wiley Rein. “Whether it can operate in private and to what extent the president can carry out DOGE’s recommendations is not an entirely clear legal question and may need to be resolved by the courts. The president cannot simply erase regulations from the books,” he adds, “but must comply with the Administrative Procedure Act, which requires agencies to take certain deliberative actions that often result in legal challenges. »
Mixed expectations surround DOGE’s ability to address government inefficiency. Resistance from entrenched corporate lobbies and the financial impact of deep cuts in government aid on voters will pose significant challenges.