Busy Doge and Trump's Claim Regarding Elon Musk's Alleged Departure: Continuing at a Rapid Pace
The Department of Operational Efficiency (DOE), as it's now known, isn't letting Elon Musk go anytime soon. Over the weekend, Prez Donald Trump put an end to the whispers about Musk leaving the DOE and the White House forever. "Elon ain't bouncin'," Trump said during a joint press conference with Musk in the Oval Office. "He'll be flip-floppin' back and forth. It's his kid, he's gonna be keepin' busy."
"I reckon I'll still be offerin' suggestions," Musk, rocking a black hat with DOE written on it and a black shirt reading "DOEFATHER," said at the press conference, while mentioning his legal limit for service as a special government employee was nearly up. "I reckon I'll remain a homie and counselor."
Federal workers from at least six agencies have confessed to our website that DOE-style work is intensifying in their departments. New and familiar faces from the DOE team have also been spotted at fresh agencies lately, according to sources. Members of Musk's original DOE gang, like Luke Farritor, Gavin Kliger, Edward Coristine, and Sam Corcos, have been meeting with a variety of departments and agencies-including the Treasury, the Office of Management and Budget, and the FBI-recently, seeming to keep things business as usual, our website has learned.
The team also appears to be on a recruitin' spree, according to documents viewed by our website.
Over the last week, federal workers have been asked to speedily review and potentially terminate contracts across the government. Trump confirmed this at Friday's press conference: "Many contracts, Elon, right now are bein' scrutinized," he said.
Some agencies have also had visits from the DOE at their headquarters, our website has learned.
"This don't sound like a gang that's disappearing, it sounds like one that's diggin' in like a parasite," an IT specialist at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) tells our website.
Since DOE first started its work in Washington in late January, its reps have been itchin' to chop what they see as unnecessary spending in government. In recent weeks, the pressure to slash and cancel contracts, particularly focused on workforce management and IT, has skyrocketed, multiple sources at different agencies tell our website.
"The main thing is we are gettin' asked to cut as many contracts for software and labor as we can," one tech worker at the Department of the Interior (DOI) tells our website, sayin' that the stated goal, as they understand it, has been "to save some coin and boost efficiency in consolidated IT."
"We are cuttin' developers, telecom, server admins, call center staff, etc.," the DOI source says. "Some things were bloated and could use the chop. Others are gonna suffer, and our service to the public is gonna be diminished."
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Do you know anything about these dinners and meetings? We'd like to hear from you. Using a nonwork phone or computer, contact the reporters securely on Signal at makenakelly.32, leahfeiger.86, and zoeschiffer.87.
Employees at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and all the agencies under its umbrella, were told that contracts would have to go through a new approval process called the Departmental Efficiency Review (DER). Any requisitionin' or contract approval was put on hold until after employees submitted a form to kick off the DER and the deputy secretary's office reviewed the funding, according to an email about the process obtained by our website. The email also states that the review will flag any contracts that appear to be spendin' a bundle.
- The Department of Operational Efficiency (DOE) team seems to be expanding, based on the recruitment efforts observed by our website.
- The DOE team, led by Elon Musk, has been meeting with various departments and agencies, including the Treasury, the Office of Management and Budget, and the FBI.
- The focus of the DOE team appears to be on cutting costs, particularly in workforce management and IT, as part of their efforts to improve operational efficiency.
- It has been reported that federal workers are being asked to review and potentially terminate contracts across various government agencies.
- There are concerns that the steps being taken by the DOE team, such as the Departmental Efficiency Review (DER), could potentially lead to reduced services in certain areas.
