Tag Archives: DOGE

What Could Go Wrong?

It really isn’t possible to keep track of the lawsuits being filed against the blizzard of Trump/Musk assaults on government and the rule of law. Suits have been filed by state Attorneys General, unions representing government workers, and a wide range of non-profit organizations challenging indiscriminate and uninformed “slash and burn” tactics.

It remains to be seen whether this lawless administration will comply with court rulings–and how far the rogue and corrupt members of the Supreme Court majority will go to accommodate Trump.

In the midst of all this is a lawsuit filed by Public Citizen, representing the Alliance for Retired Americans, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) demanding “an immediate halt to the massive and patently illegal invasion of privacy being carried out by Elon Musk’s “DOGE” at the U.S. Treasury Department.”

The organization has described he basics of the lawsuit. 

The Treasury Department possesses sensitive personal and financial information for millions and millions of Americans who send money to or receive money from the federal government.

Federal laws protect such information from improper disclosure and misuse — including by barring disclosure to individuals who lack a lawful and legitimate need for it.

But instead of protecting Americans’ private information as required by law, Scott Bessent — Trump’s jillionaire Treasury Secretary — allowed DOGE full access to the data.And he punished the Treasury employee who — in accordance with his job duties and the law — tried to protect that information from improper access.

The lawsuit charges that “the scale of this intrusion into individuals’ privacy is massive and unprecedented.”

The complaint cites the legal framework for access to this information–the laws established by Congress to protect the information–and the fact that DOGE has ignored that framework and those laws, including the Privacy Act of 1974 and several IRS statutes.

A similar suit has been filed by attorneys general of 19 states who asked for–and received– an emergency temporary restraining order blocking Elon Musk and DOGE team from accessing Treasury payment systems. That suit alleged that allowing DOGE to view information maintained by Treasury’s Bureau of Fiscal Services (BFS) violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The lawsuit noted that the payment files in question contain “sensitive personally identifiable information,” or PII, like bank account numbers, as well as “Federal Tax Information (FTI)” protected from unlawful disclosure under Code Sec. 6103 and “Automated Clearing House (ACH) data.”

During Trump’s first term, Americans were spared the effects of several potentially disastrous measures by the overwhelming incompetence of Trump’s cabinet, which was composed of cronies who had no idea how government worked and routinely ignored the legal processes necessary to accomplish their goals. (And those inept cronies look like geniuses compared to the collection of predators, toadies, nutcases and ignoramuses of Trump II.) 

During his first term, Trump largely obeyed the various adverse court rulings triggered by that ignorance. This time, there are sobering indications that our mad rulers–having neutered Congress– will also ignore the courts, eviscerating the Separation of Powers which is foundational to the nation’s legal system.

Currently, courts have issued decisions blocking DOGE from access to the sensitive, private information contained in Treasury’s files; the extent of DOGE’s compliance is, however, unclear.

 I shudder to think what a group of self-important 19-to-24-year-olds might do with the bank account information of millions of American citizens, let alone the other personal financial information in those files. But even if those IT interns are more trustworthy than they appear, respect for individual privacy is an important social good.

As one essayist has noted, 

In an era where digital footprints are ubiquitous and personal data is often treated as a commodity, the concept of privacy has never been more critical. Despite common arguments that dismiss privacy concerns with the assertion, “I have nothing to hide,” the importance of privacy extends far beyond concealing wrongdoing.

Respect for individual privacy is an essential element in keeping personal information from being misused. The more information that is available about an individual, the easier it is to exploit it via identity theft, phishing attacks, and other forms of cybercrime. 

The last paragraph of that linked essay is particularly applicable to the threat posed by Trump/Musk:

Accepting the “nothing to hide” argument can lead to the normalization of surveillance, resulting in a society where constant monitoring is the norm. This shift can erode the checks and balances that prevent abuses of power. In such a society, the line between public and private blurs, and the potential for governmental or corporate overreach grows, threatening the liberties of everyone, regardless of their behavior.

No kidding….

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Heroic And Principled

When I was growing up, in a time-frame not all that far removed from the Second World War, it wasn’t uncommon for people to ask ourselves “What would I have done if I’d been an average German citizen during the Nazi era? Would I have had the courage to hide a Jewish person? To protest?”

I’ve always been suspicious of the folks who confidently assert that they’d have stood with the moral minority; when an entire society has decided to go along with power and barbarism –either because they agree that their problems have been caused by “those people” or because it has become very dangerous to object–history tells us it is the rare individual who will risk fiscal or personal harm to resist.

I am gratified to report that–in this dangerous time– America is not devoid of such individuals.

Recent reports confirm the principled resignations of twenty-one workers from DOGE.

More than 20 civil service employees resigned Tuesday from billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, saying they were refusing to use their technical expertise to “dismantle critical public services.”

“We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations,” the 21 staffers wrote in a joint resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press. “However, it has become clear that we can no longer honor those commitments.”

The employees also warned that many of those enlisted by Musk to help him slash the size of the federal government under President Donald Trump’s administration were political ideologues who did not have the necessary skills or experience for the task ahead of them.

This report follows widespread coverage of the departures of several principled lawyers in the Department of Justice, some of whose scathing letters have been widely circulated. 

And now, the two top designers at Tesla have left the company.

While the linked report didn’t include the reason these two resigned, it did note that the departure of these two pivotal figures comes at a time when Tesla is experiencing huge problems, significantly exacerbated by popular anger at Musk’s efforts to destroy American government.

Last year was terrible for Tesla. Bad financials. Multiple recalls. Abysmal safety record. Lawsuits. The Cybertruck disaster and cratering sales. All of it tied to design problems and lack of innovation. Add to that the dip in brand loyalty thanks to CEO Elon Musk’s toxic political activity, of course.

The article noted that this confluence of problems has led one of Tesla’s biggest market supporters to warn that the company may implode in 2025.

In recent years, Tesla has faced increasing scrutiny because of poor quality, poor design choices, and the poor personal choices of its founder. Until very recently, the Texas-based automaker has been able to ride out those storms by being the only game in town. But as the legacy manufacturers upped their electric vehicle game and stepped into the market, Tesla’s many faults have became more obvious.

The departure of top designers comes as Tesla’s sales are cratering–European sales are down 45% from last year, and the media is filled with reports of Tesla owners–famous and not–returning their cars in order to protest Musk and DOGE. 

Tesla’s problems don’t just diminish Musk’s net worth; they also provide a corrective to the myth that he is a successful entrepreneur. Much like Donald Trump, Musk’s fortune began with a large inheritance from his father. He did not “invent” the Tesla–he bought the company, and contrary to carefully nurtured PR, its early success was largely a matter of timing and lack of competition. While his business operations haven’t been the outright frauds that six-bankruptcy-Donald’s have been, his fortune has been built largely with taxpayer dollars, through billion-dollar contracts with the federal government–contracts that DOGE is protecting by shutting down agencies that were investigating charges of corruption in his companies.

Resignations by principled public servants are admirable. Unlike the billionaires (like Bezos) who immediately bent a knee to our would-be overlords, most of these people lack significant resources to fall back on–and by earning the enmity of the Trumpers, they will face barriers to their prospects for substitute employment 

Quitting their jobs took guts. 

Most of us lack the ability to resist in so public or significant a fashion, but the example provided by these individuals should reinforce our resolve to do those things we can do–join grassroots organizations, call and visit our Senators and Representatives, turn out for demonstrations, engage in boycotts…

If “good Germans” could hide Jews in their attics and principled Americans can quit their jobs, the rest of us can incur some inconveniences.

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What MAGA Has Wrought

When Jennifer Rubin and Norman Eisen established The Contrarian, with the intent of keeping tabs on what was clearly going to be a rogue, anti-American administration, I immediately subscribed. (I know a lot of you really don’t want to know about the minutia of Trump/Musk’s assaults on the American Idea, but the publication is worthwhile–begin by just “skimming” if you can’t stomach the details.)

If you just want an overview, a recent article by Jennifer Rubin summed up the incredible amount of damage that these two ignoramuses–Trump and Musk–have done in just the first month of Trump II.

Rubin began by quoting Senator Maria Cantwell:

Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the ranking member on the Senate Commerce Committee, called out the mindless slashing of vital government employees. “The FAA is already short 800 technicians and these firings inject unnecessary risk into the airspace—in the aftermath of four deadly crashes in the last month,” she said. Acting-president Elon Musk’s DOGE outfit cut 300 FAA employees.

Rubin proceeded to list just a few examples of the major damage being caused by indiscriminate firings undertaken by bozos who didn’t bother to figure out what tasks their targets actually performed or how essential those task might be.

  • Flying is arguably less safe and the risk of calamities is higher.
  • Food safety has degraded and the danger of food contamination is higher.
  • American predominance in science and medicine has been undercut, with the development of life-saving drugs slowed.
  • Farmers are losing income and market share, labs working on crop innovation are shutting down, and supply-chain businesses are facing layoffs. In short, American agriculture (not to mention our image and influence in the world) has become worse off.

As Rubin points out, these Muskovite cuts are not part of an actual reworking strategy.

These are not steps of a brilliant plan to modernize and improve performance. Mindlessly slashing government agencies impinges on the health and safety of all Americans, while the layoffs weaken our economy. (Government workers, of course, live and work throughout America, not just in D.C.) Moreover, Musk-Trump personnel cuts add to the unemployment rolls. Unless fired employees can instantaneously find comparable work, some will seek public assistance, while others will pay less in taxes, reduce purchases, and/or go further into debt….

I doubt many voted for Trump (none for Musk, certainly) because they wanted to increase aircraft accidents and food poisonings while holding back medical science—let alone because they wanted to increase unemployment and shrink the economy. But that is what they are getting—it’s what we’re all getting.

The GOP White House and the spineless Republican senators who confirmed unfit nominees, as well as House Republicans who have ceded the power of the purse to an unelected South African billionaire, own the results of their demolition of government.

This particular article preceded the unconscionable treason of Trump’s betrayal of Ukraine and his undermining of NATO.

In one short month, the administration installed by MAGA cultists has given Putin a victory he could never have won on a battlefield–he is winning a war with the United States without firing a shot.

The MAGA Americans who installed and support this neo-Nazi regime are motivated by one primary–and primal–emotion: racism. It’s past time to call it for what it is.

Trump voters who offer economic or other excuses for their votes are simply unwilling to admit that what really motivates their support is fear of losing White Christian privilege. They were willing to install this clown car of petty incompetents and grifters in return for promises to attack DEI programs and trans children.

If real Americans–those of us who value liberty and equality and the Constitution–fail to rise up, fail to reverse the carnage– future history books will record that America’s precipitous collapse was caused by the persistence of “racial grievance,” the bigotries that study after study have identified as central to the MAGA cult.

As Rubin notes, the “Pottery Barn rule” applies here: you broke it, you own it.

In the case of Musk, Trump, and the AWOL Republicans in Congress, they are responsible for the hopes, aspirations, problems, well-being, and lives of roughly 347M Americans. They may relish breaking government; they may revel in the nihilism. But all of this comes with a steep price. The Contrarian is unafraid to point out that wildly slashing government means Republicans own the airplane disasters, the E. Coli outbreaks, the cancelled medical trials, the excess unemployment, and the consequent damage done when competent people performing critical tasks are fired.

They will also own a world in which the United States has become a minor and unreliable global player.

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It’s Even Worse Than We Expected

I expected the incompetence and the racism, and the first few days of the Trump Administration fulfilled those expectations. The wholesale assault on diversity–not just the elimination of DEI, but the scrubbing of any mention of minorities from websites (including those used by medical researchers)–accompanied the nominations of pathetically unqualified Whites, unintended confirmation of the charge that MAGA defines “merit” as “White guys.”

Those nominees are being confirmed by spineless GOP Senators to “manage” a workforce that is under attack. Those of us who read and understood Project 2025 anticipated these deeply concerning efforts to destroy civil service rules that  protect  professionalism and guard against politicization of the federal workforce.

But as Robert Hubbell has recently explained, what we are seeing is monumentally worse. It’s a coup. And–as he also says-the longer we fail to recognize that we are seeing a slow-rolling coup attempt, the longer it will take for us to recover. The coordinated attacks on the DOJ, FBI, Office of Personnel Management, Treasury Department, and dozens of other agencies leave little room for doubt.

Taken together, those actions amount to a hostile takeover of the US government by those who are loyal to Trump rather than to the US Constitution. The only word that accurately describes that situation is “coup.” Any other description is a sign of fear, submission, or surrender.

Hubbell proceeds to enumerate the activities that justify identifying what is occurring as a “coup.” (The linked essay has references confirming the allegations.)

Elon Musk and his DOGE infiltrators have taken over the Office of Personnel Management (OPM.) They’ve connected non-government computer servers to the US personnel mainframe computers, seized private information about millions of federal employees, and locked senior managers out of their agency’s computers. They’ve moved “sofa beds” into the OPM offices and put the offices into a “lockdown mode.”

That takeover is what allowed Musk to send his unauthorized memo inviting millions of federal employees to resign in exchange for eight months of “non-working paid employment.”

Musk and DOGE have also attempted to seize control of the US Treasury payments system. That system is the gateway through which all federal funds flow.

When a senior manager at the Treasury asked why Musk needed access to the highly sensitive system, the manager was immediately placed on leave. He chose to quit, instead. ..The Acting US Attorney for Washington, D.C., fired about 30 US Attorneys who prosecuted January 6 insurrectionists…. Think about that for a moment: The convicted felons who attacked the Capitol have been pardoned and the loyal servants of the Constitution who prosecuted them have been fired. That fact should outrage every American.

At the same time, the FBI fired eight of its most senior leaders. They headed divisions responsible for cybersecurity, national security, and criminal investigations.

The FBI has also fired dozens of agents who worked on investigations of January 6 insurrectionists and asked for a list of every agent across the US who worked on the largest criminal investigation in the history of the FBI. That list will include hundreds—possibly thousands of FBI agents. The implication of the memo ordering the compilation of the list is that those agents may be fired.

Dozens of government websites have been taken offline to be scrubbed of references to diversity, gender, or human attributes that are not white, male, and Christian. (The Census Bureau website was offline, presumably to remove evidence that America includes people who are not white male Christians.) Websites relating to LGBTQ equality, women’s health, transgender issues, and scientific knowledge in general were taken down.

The Pentagon has advised NBC, NYT, NPR, and other mainstream media outlets that they would be “rotated out of the building (i.e., the Pentagon)” to make room for NYPost, Brietbart, and OANN.

All of this is happening as the Economic-Idiot-in Chief has slapped 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico. As Hubbell quite accurately notes,

the Canadian auto industry—which is a major parts supplier to the US auto industry—cannot survive for a week with 25% tariffs. The Canadian supply chain will shut down, the American car industry will be severely damaged, and tens of thousands of US autoworkers will be laid off. We aren’t talking about inflation increasing or the cost of eggs. We are talking about tens of thousands of job losses and an economic shock likely to lead to a recession….

Soon, very soon, Americans will be called upon to leave the comfort of their homes and the anonymity of their computer screens to engage in massive, coordinated action to remind Trump and Musk that they are servants of the people, not vice-versa.

There is no longer any way to ignore what is happening, or to “sane-wash” MAGA…..

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Calling Musk’s Bluff

I have long admired Elizabeth Warren, and recently she’s given me another reason to salute her. She has called Elon Musk’s bluff–while shining a bright light on his ignorance and naivety.

As anyone who follows the news knows, Musk has bragged that he can cut two trillion dollars out of the federal budget. His hints about how he plans to accomplish that feat mostly revolve around sticking it to the poor, ill and elderly via cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and making it impossible for the federal government to do its job by slashing the federal workforce.

Warren’s advice to Musk has done two things: it has demonstrated that there are alternative ways to cut spending, and has reinforced the reality that funding decisions are policy decisions–that where and how government spends money is a reliable guide to what it considers important.

Time Magazine had the story. In a letter that Warren sent to Musk, she listed 30 recommendations for eliminating $2 trillion in federal spending over the next decade.

The list includes several of the progressive icon’s long-held policy fixations: renegotiating Department of Defense (DOD) contracts that independent analysts have found waste billions each year; reforming the Medicare Advantage insurance program and allowing Medicare to negotiate lower costs of prescription drugs; and closing tax loopholes for corporations and the wealthiest earners.

As the article noted, Musk has already walked back his promise to cut two trillion out of the budget, given that he is constrained by Trump’s vows not to touch Medicare and Social Security, and Republican refusal to cut military spending, (As the article notes, “DOGE will have to find less conventional ideas to fulfill Musk’s budget-slashing fantasy.” )

For years, Democrats and Republicans alike have wanted to curb wasteful government spending. While much of Washington recoils at Trump’s disruptive, norm-shattering second-term agenda, some see an opportunity for strange bedfellows to emerge. “In the interest of taking aggressive, bipartisan action to ensure sustainable spending, protect taxpayer dollars, curb abusive practices by giant corporations, and improve middle-class Americans’ quality of life,” Warren writes to Musk, “I would be happy to work with you on these matters.”

As the article notes, actual collaboration is probably not Warren’s goal–her letter is undoubtedly intended to make a point  rather than inviting Musk to work together. Musk, after all, is one of those “let them eat cake” deficit hawks who insist the only way to cut budget deficits is to slash the entitlement programs that prevent millions of Americans from falling into grinding poverty.

I am an advocate for a Universal Basic Income, and I take very seriously the (reasonable) charge that so expensive a measure would require massive changes to the federal budget. Accordingly, I’ve researched what experts (not self-engrossed billionaires) have to say about where we might cut current expenditures. Among the obvious possibilities are the obscene subsidies we continue to give to fossil fuel companies, and the incredibly bloated defense budget. (Even pro-defense scholars estimate that defense spending could be cut by 25% without damaging  U.S. defense capabilities.)

Warren points to similar research.

The biggest cost-saving idea in Warren’s letter is to preserve $200 billion by renegotiating Defense contracts. She points to an Inspector General report from 2011 that found contractors regularly hike prices for the military. One egregious example includes the Air Force overpaying 7,943% on soap dispensers. To rectify the problem, she urged passing legislation she previously introduced with Mike Braun, the former Republican Senator from Indiana, that would close loopholes to prevent defense contractors from price gouging the DOD. “There is a huge problem of the government being able to supervise these contractors carefully enough to be able to make sure we’re getting our money’s worth,” says Don Kettl, an expert on government administration and former dean of the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland.

Kettl recently wrote an essay in the Washington Monthly arguing that the federal government needs more and better skilled civil servants to oversee contractors and that Musk and Trump’s plans to massively reduce the federal workforce will perversely lead to higher, not lower, government spending. “The argument is that the market can do the government’s work better and cheaper,” Kettl says. “The problem is that that’s not always the case, and contractors often get higher wages.”

Musk and Trump and their ilk continue to prove the accuracy of that old H.L. Mencken quote:”For every complex problem, there’s a solution that is simple, neat, and wrong.”

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