Many actions associated with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have been met with support from advocates of reducing the size and power of the United States government. Spending has been halted, and US government employment rolls have been reduced. But, is this all leading to a real government reduction or, instead, are the American people being set up for a grand switcheroo?
Notably, DOGE actions are not being codified via legislation to ensure they stick, even as these actions are challenged in court and judges strike them down. Rather, Congress has, with President Donald Trump’s strong support, kept spending on autopilot based on the course established in the previous presidential administration.
The future looks, unfortunately for advocates of reduced government, like it will entail spending continuing at ever higher amounts, just overseen in significant part by replacement employees and contractors of the Trump administration’s choosing. In the mix there will be some winners and losers as policy alters, but the trajectory of US government size and power will continue upward and onward.
An important question for advocates of reducing the size and power of the US government to ask at the end of each year of Trump’s presidency is if total real spending has decreased from during the preceding Joe Biden presidency. If the answer is “no,” then, while the US government may have become different, it would be hard to argue it has become smaller and less powerful.
And watch out if government efficiency actually increases. As the old saying wisely advises, just be glad you’re not getting all the government you’re paying for.
