


Elon Musk is once again getting trounced on his own social media platform.
The billionaire tech mogul sat down Thursday with Fox News and addressed critics of his Department of Government Efficiency, which has been dismantling federal agencies in the name of reducing supposedly wasteful spending, and made one particularly baffling claim.
Musk told anchor Bret Baier that DOGE carefully considers which agencies to gut and how many staffers to fire, and claimed even unnamed Democrats “occasionally” express their appreciation for what some have called the “hollowing out” of the U.S. government.
“But usually when they attack DOGE, they never attack any of the specifics,” he added. “So they will say what we’re doing is somehow unconstitutional or illegal, or whatever. We’re like, ‘Which line of the cost savings do you disagree with?’ And they can’t point to any.”
A clip of the moment has since gone viral on Musk’s platform X, formerly Twitter, where untold users — including lawmakers like Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) and political pundits like Mehdi Hasan — called Musk’s bluff by producing the specifics he asked for.
“Erm, how about cuts to school nutrition funding?” wrote Hasan. “Or mosquito nets to fight malaria? Or Social Security offices that are now closing? Or cuts to funding to fight measles in Texas? Or the canceling of long-term study into diabetes? Specific enough?”
“Hey @elonmusk: I am specifically against closing Social Security offices and phone lines so seniors can’t get checks,” wrote Casar. “I’m also specifically against cutting funding for cancer research, firing veterans, and firing nuclear safety workers. Hope this helps!”
Musk spent a quarter-billion dollars to help reelect President Donald Trump and was made a “special government employee” tasked with finding federal fraud, waste and abuse. His chaotic approach, however, has since spawned numerous lawsuits against DOGE.
When asked Wednesday if the process “still involves Congress,” Musk said he and his DOGE team “try to keep Congress informed as much as possible,” but suggested they don’t actually need to — as “it’s not contrary to Congress to avoid waste and fraud.”
Musk has been getting eviscerated on X for his claims, with one user writing: “If the savings come from gutting safety teams, bypassing oversight, or ignoring labor standards, then the outrage is earned. Saving money by cutting corners isn’t efficiency, it’s negligence.”
There’s no shortage of similar comments on X, which Musk acquired in 2022 for $44 billion.
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