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Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Less than half of DOGE-terminated contracts can be publicly tracked, only about a quarter of grants: watchdog
With Elon Musk's departure from the agency, there's debate roiling over how effective the Department of Government Efficiency's (DOGE), has been in its mission. In a report released just one day prior to Musk stepping down, financial watchdog Open The Books published a report finding it is likely impossible for the average American taxpayer to track the savings associated with the contracts and grants that were terminated by the DOGE team. According to Open The Books' analysis, which mined all the data published on DOGE's official website, the average American taxpayer would likely only be able to confirm 42% of contracts and 27% of grants through an independent review of public federal spending databases. "This doesn't mean these targets aren't real, it simply means it's very hard for taxpayers who want to see additional savings to find proof and evidence of savings," Open The Books points out in its analysis, shared in a report the group released Tuesday. 'Bureaucratic And Wasteful': Doge Sniffs Out Eye-popping Spending On Biden Dei Efforts In Key Agency "Because taxpayers don't have access to real-time transparency and a real-time look at the Treasury Payment System, it's still too difficult for even a highly motivated Joe Taxpayer to confirm the savings claims DOGE is making," the analysis, released ahead of Elon Musk stepping down from running the agency, continued. "It's also far too easy for critics to sew [sic] doubt and confusion." Read On The Fox News App DOGE says on its website that the group's work up to this point has provided the American taxpayer with $175 billion in "estimated" savings from the elimination of contracts, grants and leases, as well as through renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletion and other mechanisms. However, DOGE's estimated savings have been contested by watchdog groups and budget experts. Such critics have posited that the inclusion of already canceled contracts, double-counting or misrepresentation of contract values, and the unaccounted cost burden that could be imposed on the government when it has to re-hire folks down the line, or revamp its productivity, due to DOGE cuts, have led to inflated savings estimates. Nate Malkus, a senior fellow at the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute, has accused DOGE of "overestimating contracts by a factor of two," according to CBS News. Elon Musk 'Disappointed' By Trump's Spending Bill, Says It Undermines What Doge Is Doing But White House spokesperson Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital that DOGE has produced "historic savings" for the American people. "DOGE is working at record speed to cut waste, fraud, and abuse, producing historic savings for the American people," Fields said. "The DOGE Wall of Receipts provides the latest and most accurate information following a thorough assessment, which takes time. Updates to the DOGE savings page will continue to be made promptly, and departments and agencies will keep highlighting the massive savings DOGE is achieving." "DOGE and Elon Musk have done the country an incredible service by identifying savings targets," added Open The Books CEO John Hart. "Having worked on the last major deficit commission with the late Senator Tom Coburn, we would have been elated to have had Musk in our corner. Now it's up to Congress to not only turn DOGE's recommendations into durable savings but to go beyond DOGE's scope and truly tackle our long-term debt and deficit crisis." Open The Books highlighted two "common sense" standards to help establish an "intellectually honest" approach to understanding the true impact of government cuts, such as those being recommended by DOGE. The first is the "durable standard," which asks whether a proposed cut can be easily reversed. Obama-nominated Judge Allows Lawsuit Targeting Musk's Role With Doge To Proceed, Drops Claims Against Trump "Describing something as 'durable' does not mean it is permanent or irreversible; it simply means it is hard to reverse," the Open The Books' analysis stated. "The most durable budget cut in our constitutional system would be passed by Congress, signed into law by the president and be clearly constitutional, or unassailable in a court challenge. Budget cuts become less durable when they lack any of these three elements." The second is called a "duty standard," which illuminates the power behind certain cuts based on who is trying to impose them. "In our constitutional system, the founders gave the job of budget savings to three branches but primarily to Congress," Open The Books points out. "DOGE's job is to identify, not enact, savings targets. It's up to Congress to do the heavy lifting. And We the People have a responsibility to be informed and hold our elected officials accountable." White House Sending $9.4B Doge Cuts Package To Congress Next Week Open The Books ultimately concluded that due to various limitations associated with publicly available data on government spending and revenue, in particular a lack of real-time access to the government's Treasury Payment System, it is still too difficult for even the most motivated average American citizen to either confirm, or deny, the savings claimed by DOGE. Elon Musk officially stepped down from his role as DOGE chief Wednesday evening, as his position of "special government employee" in the Trump administration was limited by law to a few months. Amid the transition, Musk criticized Republicans' spending bill that was passed ahead of Memorial Day in the House, indicating he was "disappointed" it would increase the federal deficit. "I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing," Musk told CBS News in an interview that will air in full on June article source: Less than half of DOGE-terminated contracts can be publicly tracked, only about a quarter of grants: watchdog
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DOJ issues complaint about federal judge's ‘misconduct' while presiding over military trans ban court case
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sent a written complaint about U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes to the Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Sri Srinivasan, following a tense case between the Trump administration and two LGBTQ groups. The letter, signed by Attorney General Pam Bondi's Chief of Staff, Chad Mizelle, concerns what the DOJ characterized as Reyes' "misconduct" during the proceedings in Nicolas Talbott et al. v. Donald J. Trump et al., a case brought by two LGBTQ groups challenging the Trump Administration's Executive Orders barring transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military. According to the complaint, the transcript "reveals multiple instances where Judge Reyes' misconduct compromised the dignity of the proceedings and demonstrated potential bias, raising serious concerns about her ability to preside impartially in this matter." Judge Grants 19 Ags Preliminary Injunction Against Doge Access To Treasury Payment System During the proceedings, Judge Reyes listed off executive orders signed by President Trump since taking office, including recognizing only two sexes, blocking school funding from promoting the idea that gender can be fluid, directing the State Department to stop issuing documents allowing a third gender marker, and revoking the ability of trans federal employees to receive a sex change. She also called out the Trump administration for revoking an earlier regulation concerning trans people having equal access to homeless shelters. Officials Push Back On Claims On 'List' Of Generals Hegseth Plans To Fire At Pentagon Read On The Fox News App The letter says Judge Reyes asked DOJ attorney Jason Lynch, "What do you think Jesus would say to telling a group of people that they are so worthless … that we're not going to allow them into homeless shelters? Do you think Jesus would be, 'Sounds right to me?' Or do you think Jesus would say, 'WTF? Of course, let them in?'" DOJ attorneys asserted that the line of questioning was "deeply problematic for several reasons" – including placing DOJ counsel in an untenable position of either appearing unresponsive or speculating about how an incoherent hypothetical aligns with Reyes' personal religious beliefs. The letter highlighted another incident in which Judge Reyes engaged in a rhetorical exercise to draw parallels to trans people being barred from military service. The judge instructed DOJ counsel, "My new standing order says that no one who graduated from UVA Law School can appear before me. So, I need you to sit down, please. I need you to sit down." Trump Says Deal With Ukraine For Us Access To Its Rare Earth Minerals Is 'Pretty Close' When counsel complied with this directive, the judge continued her hypothetical about UVA law graduates being banned from her courtroom because "they're all liars and lack integrity." The letter alleged that only after Judge Reyes used counsel as a physical prop did she allow him to continue the proceedings. She then asked counsel if he saw how unfair the reasoning was. Still, the DOJ asserted in its complaint that such treatment "undermines the dignity of counsel and the decorum of the courtroom." There were times when Judge Reyes commended DOJ lawyer Jason Lynch, telling him and the gallery that he was doing a credible job arguing for the government in a difficult situation. The letter closes by requesting that "appropriate action be taken to address these violations," saying that, at a "minimum, this matter warrants further investigation to determine whether these incidents represent a pattern of misconduct that requires more significant remedial measures." U.S. District Court judges sit on the bench as a lifetime appointment. However, it is possible that Chief Judge Srinivasan could reprimand Judge Reyes, or possibly suggest she recuse herself from the article source: DOJ issues complaint about federal judge's 'misconduct' while presiding over military trans ban court case
