Tag Archives: Department of Government Efficiency

ABC News: New Social Security chief tells staff he had to Google the job when he was offered it

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ABC News obtained audio of Frank Bisignano’s staff meeting with managers.

The newly sworn-in head of the Social Security Administration told agency staff this week that when he was first offered the job in the Trump administration, he wasn’t familiar with the position and had to look it up online.

Frank Bisignano, a former Wall Street executive, said during a town hall with Social Security managers from around the country on Wednesday that he wasn’t seeking a position in the Trump administration when he received a call about leading the SSA.

“So, I get a phone call and it’s about Social Security. And I’m really, I’m really not, I swear I’m not looking for a job,” Bisignano said, according to an audio recording of the meeting obtained by ABC News. “And I’m like, ‘Well, what am I going to do?’ So, I’m Googling Social Security. You know, one of my great skills, I’m one of the great Googlers on the East Coast.”

“I’m like, ‘What the heck’s the commissioner of Social Security?'” said Bisignano, who now oversees one of the largest federal agencies that’s responsible for distributing retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to more than 70 million Americans.

“A former Wall Street executive”, once the head of a major financial services firm, has to use Google to find out what the Commissioner of Social Security does? He seems relatively harmless compared to F’Elon Musk and his band of DOGE stooges, but I’m still not impressed.

I’ll bet I’m a lot better with Google than he is. Am I qualified for the job? 😀

New head of Social Security, hired from Wall Street, tells staff he had to Google the job when he was offered it
Newly sworn-in Social Security chief Frank Bisignano, who previously was a Wall Street executive, told staffers he had to Google the SSA job when it was offered to him.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/new-head-social-security-hired-wall-street-tells/story?id=122075152

NSNBC: Trump isn’t cutting red tape. He’s creating more of it for average Americans.

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Trump plans would make it harder to get Medicaid, register to vote and pay your taxes.

But when it comes to average Americans, the president and his allies in Congress are fine with making it harder to file your taxes, receive benefits, access government services or register to vote.

Consider a few recent examples:

• The Trump administration plans to end an IRS pilot program that allowed some taxpayers with simple returns to file their federal taxes online for free. 

• In the megabill comprising much of Trump’s first-year agenda, House Republicans are moving ahead with new work requirements to qualify for health insurance through Medicaid.

• The Trump administration developed a plan (since rescinded) to require more Americans applying for Social Security to visit offices in person to prove their identities.

• Another Republican bill would require ID such as a passport or a birth certificate to register to vote (and a marriage certificate, too, if you’re a woman who changed her name).

Let’s call this what it is: red tape — needless box-checking, form-filling and drudgery that accomplishes nothing except making it harder for Americans to get what they need.

Opinion | Republican red tape
Trump plans would make it harder to get Medicaid, register to vote and pay your taxes.

https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-medicaid-social-security-red-tape-rcna207999

MSNBC: Democrats grill RFK Jr. over ‘devastating’ funding cuts at fiery hearing

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Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., warned HHS’ proposed budget for 2026 would “leave America sicker and weaker.”

In her opening statement, Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, the top Democrat on the subcommittee, noted that under the proposed budget, NIH funds would be cut by nearly $18 billion compared with the previous fiscal year.

“That would have a devastating impact on research into lifesaving cures and treatments,” Baldwin said, warning it would set “back medical innovations by decades.”

Baldwin said that while the hearing was meant to focus on next year’s budget, the proposal provided insight into what Kennedy was doing at the agency now, in fiscal year 2025. Since Donald Trump returned to the White House, HHS has cut more than 20,000 jobs and slashed billions of dollars for scientific research as part of the Department of Government Efficiency’s effort to reduce the federal budget.

Baldwin questioned the secretary over the department’s withholding funds that were already appropriated by Congress, including thousands of dollars in grants for research on rare diseases, Alzheimer’s and cancer. “We’re not abandoning any lifesaving research,” Kennedy answered. “We’ve cut administrators, we’re cutting waste, we’re cutting duplicative programs.”

The senator also pressed Kennedy about the proposed cuts to NIH and asked whether the lack of funding would slow the development of treatments and cures. “We are the sickest country in the world, so that money has not been well-spent,” Kennedy replied.

Keep in mind that this is a Secretary of Health and Human Services who had brain worms, eats bush meat and road kill, and takes his grandchildren swimming in a creek polluted with raw sewage. And he’s lecturing us on health?

https://www.msnbc.com/top-stories/latest/rfk-jr-contentious-congressional-hearing-funding-cuts-rcna208070

MiBolsillo Colombia: SSA’s DOGE phone policy led to delays with minimal fraud caught

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The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), established by Elon Musk’s team, entered the Social Security Administration (SSA) with a mission to cut costs and eliminate perceived widespread fraud. DOGE believed that much of this fraudulent activity occurred over the phone. Despite not being a Cabinet-level agency, DOGE’s influence led to the implementation of a controversial phone policy aimed at fraud detection.

At DOGE’s request, a security verification process was developed to detect allegedly fraudulent claims made by phone. This involved a three-day hold on all phone claims while personnel verified the caller’s background. The system mirrored internet claim verification, where claims remain in a database for days before processing. Despite internal skepticism about its necessity, the policy was implemented due to fears of job loss if DOGE’s demands were not met.

The three-day security verification was abandoned due to its ineffectiveness in identifying fraud. It only flagged a couple of potential fraud cases out of 110,000 calls reviewed.

SSA’s DOGE phone policy led to delays with minimal fraud caught
SSA’s fraud-prevention phone policy, backed by DOGE and Elon Musk’s team, caused major delays and few results, drawing widespread criticism

https://www.mibolsillo.co/news/SSAs-DOGE-phone-policy-led-to-delays-with-minimal-fraud-caught-20250518-0030.html

Bloomburg: DOGE Asks US Supreme Court to Block Access to Its Records

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The Trump administration has asked the US Supreme Court to halt a judge’s order that would force it to answer questions from a watchdog group and turn over documents about Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency in a fight over public access to the office’s records.DO

The Justice Department is challenging a ruling that requires the US DOGE Service to comply with demands by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, or CREW, for information about its structure and operations. That includes making DOGE administrator Amy Gleason available to testify under oath at a deposition. A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit on May 14 denied the government’s request to intervene.

DOGE just can’t handle the sunshine & public scrutiny!

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-21/doge-asks-us-supreme-court-to-block-group-s-access-to-records

And here:

DOGE Asks US Supreme Court to Block Access to Its Records
The Trump administration has asked the US Supreme Court to halt a judge’s order that would force it to answer questions from a watchdog group and turn over documents about Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency in a fight over public access to the office’s records.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/doge-asks-us-supreme-court-to-block-access-to-its-records/ar-AA1FdkQJ

Axios Sneak Peek: DOGE efforts face pushback at Social Security

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Some changes implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency at the Social Security Administration are reportedly being rolled back, but the agency is still struggling with fallout from the Elon Musk chainsaw.

The retreat shows the limits of DOGE’s slash-and-burn strategy at an agency that is deeply enmeshed with Americans’ lives.

DOGE efforts face pushback at Social Security
The retreat shows the limits at an agency deeply enmeshed in the lives of Americans.

https://www.axios.com/2025/05/21/social-security-efforts-doge

Fortune: U.S. economy is experiencing ‘death by a thousand cuts’, says Deutsche Bank, as confidence in national debt management erodes

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Economists have criticized politicians’ plans to reduce America’s national debt as too little, too late. But analysts are warning that the issue is now coming home to roost, with the once unshakeable confidence in the United States’ fiscal future beginning to erode.

America’s national debt, which currently stands at more than $36.2 trillion, is increasingly rising on economists’ agendas. Their fear is that as the nation’s debt burden increases, alongside the interest payments to service the debt, the economy will not grow fast enough to sustain the spending.

Such fears were reflected in a Moody’s downgrade of U.S. credit last week from Aaa to Aa1. Moody’s justified: “While we recognize the US’ significant economic and financial strengths, we believe these no longer fully counterbalance the decline in fiscal metrics.”

U.S. economy is experiencing ‘death by a thousand cuts’, says Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank’s Jim Reid says Moody’s recent debt downgrade continues a drip of bad fiscal news for the American economic outlook.

https://fortune.com/2025/05/20/us-economy-experiencing-death-by-thousand-cuts-deutsche-bank

Also here:

U.S. economy is experiencing ‘death by a thousand cuts’, says Deutsche Bank, as confidence in national debt management erodes

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/u-s-economy-is-experiencing-death-by-a-thousand-cuts-says-deutsche-bank-as-confidence-in-national-debt-management-erodes/ar-AA1F7C7n

Alternet: ‘Gross usurpation of power’: Judge rips Trump in ruling striking down agency takeover

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In a strongly worded ruling against Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and its takeover of the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell said that the move “represented a gross usurpation of power.”

According to the Hill, the judge also issued an injunction barring officials from DOGE and other Trump administration representatives from accessing USIP’s facilities or systems, effectively halting their involvement with the institute.

The order nullified the administration’s decision to dismiss the USIP board members and its president, confirming that they continue to hold their official roles. The appointment of individuals by DOGE was also overturned, requiring their removal from the board.

The judge said President Donald Trump and his subordinates used “acts of force” and threatened officers.

“The President’s efforts here to take over an organization outside of those bounds, contrary to statute established by Congress and by acts of force and threat using local and federal law enforcement officers, represented a gross usurpation of power and a way of conducting government affairs that unnecessarily traumatized the committed leadership and employees of USIP, who deserved better,” Howell said in the ruling.

https://www.alternet.org/usip-takeover-doge

USA Today: ‘We have to try lifting ourselves’: USAID workers fired months ago are still scrambling for jobs

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They were among the first of the federal employees to lose their jobs, and months later, laid off workers for the U.S. Agency for International Development are still struggling to regain their footing.

…

Roughly 95% said they had lost savings and retirement funds, 60% lost access to health care, and 37% have already lost their housing. Many said they will have trouble paying their bills in the coming months. 

‘We have to try lifting ourselves’: USAID workers fired months ago are still scrambling for jobs
USAID’s former workers are used to helping people and projects around the world – but now they’re turning inward to support each other.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/05/19/usaid-workers-next-job/83332416007

Independent: Elon Musk endorses conspiracy theory around Biden’s cancer diagnosis

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Musk endorsed a theory accusing the Democrats of an “evil” plan to get rid of Biden as president and to replace him with former Vice President Kamala Harris

President Donald Trump’s ally, [F’]Elon Musk, endorsed a conspiracy theory about former-President Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis in a post on X.

On Sunday night, right-wing podcast host Clint Russell took to X to accuse the Democrats of forging an “evil” plan to get Biden elected into office and strategically drop out because of his diagnosis, to pave the way for Kamala Harris to take the reins.

F’Elon & King Donald are simply despicable. Just have the grace to let Biden deal with his illness peacefully.

Elon Musk endorses conspiracy theory around Biden’s cancer diagnosis
Musk endorsed a theory accusing the Democrats of an “evil” plan to get rid of Biden as president and to replace him with former Vice President Kamala Harris

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/elon-musk-conspiracy-theory-biden-cancer-b2753683.html