Elon Musk fired back at critics of his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) when he shared a video clip featuring former President Barack Obama declaring comparable government reductions 14 years prior.
Musk shared a video clip on his X account by reposting it. Democrat In 2011, Obama announced the 'Campaign to Cut Waste' initiative aimed at reducing superfluous governmental expenditures, stating that it "sounded precisely like DOGE."
In the video snippet, Obama mentioned that he had assigned his Vice President at the time Joe Biden responsible for the campaign, since 'no one dares to mess with Joe.'
He mentioned multiple instances identified by the campaign during its initial phase as examples of "wasteful spending with no benefits," which included sustaining a website for a folk band called the 'Fiddlin Foresters.'
No level of wasteful spending is tolerable, particularly when it involves taxpayers' dollars," Obama stated. "Much like households manage their budgets, governmental bodies ought to do the same.
Despite facing backlash over Musk’s strategy of drastically cutting costs by eliminating whole departments and dismissing numerous employees through his acquisition of DOGE, the tycoon posted the video to liken himself to Obama, who made "difficult choices" during his presidency.
"Everybody understands that eliminating the deficit will entail making difficult choices, which may involve reducing spending by billions of dollars from programs many people hold dear," Obama stated in the previous footage.
While some lauded the comparison, others on X claimed Obama's cost-cutting measures on items like unused federal buildings were not the same as Musk's slash-and-burn approach.
When Obama’s segment was circulated during his preparation for the 2012 reelection campaign, several viewers of Musk’s footage noted that it did not have much impact on federal expenditures.
Podcast host Joe Rogan commented on the video, stating that "it took 14 years along with Elon Musk and Donald Trump to turn discussion into action."
Obama stated in his announcement that the measures were aimed at 'eliminating the deficit.' However, during his eight-year tenure, the federal budget deficit increased by 58 percent, totaling more than $6.7 trillion.
In the announcement, he also mentioned that certain items slated for cuts "ought to be eliminated regardless of our budget deficit."
Citing instances of "reckless expenditures," Obama criticized the 'Fiddling Foresters' group webpage, stating: "I might listen to their tunes on my iPod, but I won’t foot the bill for their site."
The 44th president proceeded to emphasize various other reductions, such as 'countless structures nationwide that remain unused.'
Following Obama’s statement that Biden would lead an effort to ‘search for misused tax funds across all agencies and departments within this administration,’ Biden joined him during the announcement where he vowed to address expenditures with an unwavering commitment.
"We are taking responsibility for our actions, and we are strongly dedicated and concentrated on improving governmental operations," he stated.
Although certain Trump backers such as Rogan commended the analogy drawn between Obama's 2011 program and Musk’s DOGE reductions, others contended that this comparison was misleading.
One X user responded: 'Obama wasn't cutting agencies in half or almost in their entirety. He was computerizing processes, getting rid of paperwork/ paper files - nothing like DOGE.'
"Apologies, but Obama was not a billionaire with contracts from the government," one individual commented.
'The person was neither an entrepreneur from South Africa nor someone who fired numerous individuals solely for the purpose of downsizing. He didn’t resemble Obama at all.'
However, Texas Representative Chip Roy expressed his support by sharing the clip with the caption: "There’s a video/tweet for every situation."
The reappearance of this clip coincides with DOGE causing a significant split between Washington and ordinary citizens.
Although Musk and Trump’s followers have applauded reductions in minor but costly initiatives, opponents contend that these extensive cutbacks have also affected significant and essential expenditures.
Following the budget cuts to organizations such as USAID and the IRS, This week's DOGE measurements centered around the United States Postal Service. .
On Friday, it was revealed that Postmaster General Louis DeJoy inked a deal allowing Elon Musk's DOGE to assist the USPS in 'recognizing and attaining additional efficiencies.'
DeJoy penned a letter to Congress stating, 'The DOGE team kindly requested our assistance in addressing significant issues they could tackle.'
The recent development follows Musk’s assertion that America cannot be considered a genuine democracy if judges obstructing President Donald Trump's austerity measures are allowed to remain on the bench.
A different federal judge has instructed that government workers who were placed on probation and subsequently let go during this year’s large-scale layoffs should be reinstated.
Earlier this month, Trump specified that Musk’s role with DOGE involves suggesting sectors where the federal government could reduce wasteful spending and save taxpayer dollars.
During an unexpected gathering, the president informed his Cabinet members that they would take responsibility for enforcing these suggestions within their individual departments and organizations to align them with his policy goals.
Under its long-term Deliver for America initiative launched in 2021, USPS aims to decrease its staff by an additional 10,000 within the coming month following the reduction of 30,000 positions since the beginning of the program until now.
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