Here is how much Elon Musk’s DOGE actually saved out of the $2 trillion he originally promised to cut.
The billionaire recently announced that he would be departing from his role in government after being appointed as an unelected official by President Donald Trump earlier this year.
Musk took on the role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) after forming a close friendship with the president during his election campaign.
Last year, the Tesla boss donated a whopping $288 million to Trump’s campaign and, since the inauguration in January, Musk has been busy hacking away at the federal budget as part of DOGE’s mission to cut back on government spending.
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However, earlier this week, Musk announced that he was leaving his role.
Taking to his own social media platform X, formerly Twitter, he wrote: “As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending.
“The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”
How much money did Musk save the government?
At the start of his new role, Musk promised that he would cut $2 trillion from federal spending. But how much did he actually end up saving?
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In the last four months, DOGE has claimed to have saved $175 billion from the government budget through various methods including the canceling of contracts, asset sales and making mass layoffs.
However, it’s not clear whether these savings will stick.
Just hours prior to Musk’s departure announcement, the billionaire revealed that he wasn’t too happy about the president’s new budget plan.
Speaking to CBS Sunday Morning, Musk said: “I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing.”
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Titled the ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’, the new budget is promising tax cuts and further military spending, while cutting some federal health and energy programs.
Musk went on to say: “I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don’t know if it can be both.”
Speaking last month about Musk taking a step back from his, Vice President JD Vance said: “DOGE has got a lot of work to do, and yeah, that work is going to continue after Elon leaves, but fundamentally, Elon is going to remain a friend and an adviser of both me and the president.
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“The work of DOGE is not even close to done. He’s done a lot of good things.”