“Makiko” is not efficient. It has three syllables. Some say it is difficult to pronounce. Others seem to find it even harder to remember. Some people want to shorten it: “Maki, like sushi!” But Makiko thinks there are things more important than simplicity, ease, and speed.
Makiko is not efficient. She practices the piano every day. All her degrees are in piano performance. She performs concerts, gives talks, and writes about how music can makes us happier and healthier. For all the hours she dedicates to her lifework, she makes very little money.
Makiko is not efficient. Makiko takes slow walks in the morning. She likes listening to the birds, and looking at the trees in the morning light. She thinks it’s important to slow down to think. What has been efficient about DOGE, she wonders. The so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is NOT a federal executive department, despite its name. Isn’t the misleading name already inefficient? Being efficient means achieving the desired results without wasteful investment of time, energy or material. But efficiency to achieve what for whom?
Is DOGE efficient?
Is DOGE efficient? Their actions undermine our federal workers’ job security, disrespect their expertise and professionalism, and lower their morale. One of the first things DOGE did was to go after every effort for diversity, equity and inclusion. Not only did it terminate all DEI related federal programs, employment, contracts and websites, but DOGE recently rehired Marko Elez who was linked to a now-deleted social media account that advocated racism and eugenics. Tens of thousands of federal employees from multiple federal agencies from IRS to National Park Service have been shown the door, in what many argue are illegal terminations of their employment. DOGE is also doing this carelessly. Some of these federal workers – protecting the nuclear weapons at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), fighting bird flu at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and supplying electricity at the Department of Energy – were rehired after being fired. ALL of this is very wasteful investment of everyone’s time, energy and material – by definition, the opposite of efficiency.
How efficient, or inefficient, is DOGE?
How efficient or inefficient DOGE is is hard to determine. This is because of #1 the misinformation and disinformation around WHY they are doing what they are doing, #2 the questions of legality about HOW they are doing what they are doing, and #3 the miscalculations on the results their actions have been yielding.
The misinformation and disinformation around why DOGE is doing what it is doing abound. For example, United States Agency for International Development, a.k.a. USAID, became one of the first U.S. government agencies to be dismantled by DOGE. Established in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy, USAID has been one of the world’s largest aid agencies to implement programs in global health, disaster relief, socioeconomic development, environmental protection, democratic governance and education in over 100 countries. Nevertheless, many now support DOGE’s move to dismantle USAID, because they believe the disinformation on social media, perpetuated by Elon Musk and the administration. The contents portray USAID as “lawless and fraudulent,” and as “a tool for the left” to support DEI projects and fund media for leftist propaganda.
The question of legality around DOGE starts at its leadership structure, Elon Musk, and his young team members’ qualifications, background and security clearance. Despite Musk’s self-promotion about his dominance over DOGE operations, Musk has “no actual or formal authority to make government decisions,” nor is he the administrator of the newly formed DOGE, according to an affidavit filed in federal court by a White House official. The very way that the new administration has set up DOGE, as well as its operations, has been questioned and challenged in courts in more than a dozen cases so far. Even internally, the questions around ethics is creating a rift. “On February 25, 21 DOGE employees resigned en masse, stating in a letter, “We will not use our skills as technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services.” These employees had worked for the United States Digital Service (USDS) prior to the creation of DOGE and were among 65 USDS staff who remained under DOGE. In the letter, they stated that “we swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution” but could not honor their oath under DOGE, and they warned about the politicization of the department.”
DOGE claims to have saved $55 billion of government spendings thus far through “fraud detection/deletion, contract/lease cancellations, contract/lease renegotiations, asset sales, grant cancellations, workforce reductions, programmatic changes, and regulatory savings.” However, according to the New York Times, their list is full of “accounting errors, incorrect assumptions, outdated data, and other mistakes.” In one line item, an $8 million dollar contract was erroneously entered as $8 billion. In the end, from DOGE’s “wall of receipts,” it is hard to estimate how much of taxpayers’ dollars DOGE has actually saved with its “sledgehammers.” According to NPR, it is estimated at about $2 billion. Another report by Associated Press find that about 40% of contract terminations lead to no savings.
Efficiency for WHOM?
Elon Musk, DOGE’s unelected, unofficial leader, is the richest man in the world, and Trump’s biggest campaign donor with his $288-million-dollar donations. In fiscal year 2023, Musk’s companies received close to $3 billion dollars from federal government contracts. That would come out to about $8 million per day. Yet, he has DOGE scrutinizing Social Security – from which an average American senior receive $65 dollars a day – for “efficiency” on the government spending. Despite the obvious – and on-going – concern for the conflict of interests, he refuses to disclose his finances as a special government employee.
Efficiency for WHEN: what time scale?
Let’s say DOGE can still reach its goal, saving $2 trillion by July 4, 2026. Will that really enhance our overall quality of lives, communities and country? Further, these drastic measures have their own costs. Unemployment will increase due to the fired federal employees and government contract workers. The quality/quantity of government services and infrastructure will decrease. These are some of the most immediate consequences I can think of. However, more concerning is the long term consequences: upending our government agencies and historical infrastructure the way DOGE are doing right now can really undermine our core values and social/legal/economic structures. What DOGE is doing now is myopic. And we will be living with the consequences of its actions for years to come, or longer. The longer it will take us to stop them, the worse the consequences will be.
Is efficiency our purpose?
Efficiency is a means to an end. Going after efficiency without clarifying what we want to accomplish is like hoarding profit and power for the sake of profit and power. DOGE will not make us richer as individuals, or a nation. Worse, it is threatening things way more valuable than wealth.
What can we do?
Let’s first recognize that there are things more valuable than short-term gains and self-interest. Together, we are the stewards to our mother earth. Let’s be proud in being a part of something bigger than our own selves. Our everyday actions determine the future of our offspring.
We are social animals. Our survival depends on our ability to commiserate, collaborate and cohabitate. Let’s lift each other up, and hold each other accountable to do our best. Let’s talk. Let’s protest. Let’s write and publish. Let’s say out loud what we want done. Let’s say out loud the kind of policies we want, to create the kind of future we want.
People united will never be defeated.
What we share is greater than our differences – and we share our home, our planet earth, and our future on it. We are all interconnected. My happiness is yours. Your hardship is mine.
