Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) promised to save taxpayers billions by targeting waste, fraud, and abuse across federal agencies. Instead, new analysis shows that DOGE’s federal workforce cuts have cost taxpayers roughly $135 billion, undermining the very efficiency goals it claimed to champion. The department has now been shut down eight months early, raising questions about whether DOGE was ever a sustainable model for government reform. For more analysis, visit BrandonBent.com.
DOGE’s Workforce Cuts and Their Financial Impact
Since President Donald Trump’s return to office and Elon Musk’s leadership at DOGE, roughly 260,000 federal employees—about 11% of the federal workforce—have been fired, pushed into buyouts, or retired early. DOGE touted $150 billion in savings, but experts argue these cuts caused billions in lost productivity and diminished government revenue. Independent analysts estimate that nearly half of the $270 billion annual federal payroll was effectively wasted due to firing costs, paid leave, rehiring expenses, and operational disruption.
DOGE Shutdown and Aftermath
As of November 2025, DOGE has been formally shut down, with its functions absorbed by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). OPM Director Scott Kupor confirmed that DOGE “does not exist” as a centralized agency. Although some personnel were reassigned, the closure represents the collapse of an experiment that promised $1 trillion in government savings but delivered far less than expected.
The IRS Workforce Exodus Ripple Effect
The IRS has suffered some of the most severe consequences of DOGE workforce cuts. Up to one‑third of its 100,000 employees are projected to resign or retire by 2026. This reduction is expected to cause an $8.5 billion loss in tax revenue next year alone and nearly $198 billion over the next decade due to fewer auditors and weakened enforcement. Analysts say this demonstrates that aggressive cuts can reduce government income rather than improve efficiency.
The True Cost of DOGE-Style “Efficiency”
Experts argue that DOGE’s strategy ignored the operational value federal workers provide. Richard Prisinzano of The Budget Lab highlights that government salaries often generate significant returns through essential services like audits and compliance operations. Additionally, Musk’s mandate for weekly accomplishment reports drained an estimated 165,000 employee hours per week, reducing productivity further.
Criticism, Controversy, and Overstated Savings
Critics claim DOGE exaggerated its reported savings by as much as 80%, relying on accounting methods viewed as politically motivated. Max Stier of the Partnership for Public Service warns that these extreme cuts destabilize governance and ultimately push costs back onto taxpayers. While the Trump administration defended DOGE as a bold modernization effort, evidence now suggests the initiative produced more harm than benefit.
Sources
- https://fortune.com/article/doge-mass-federal-workforce-cuts-taxpayers-billions/
- https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/24/politics/doge-reported-demise
- https://time.com/7336327/doge-disbanded-elon-musk/
Nothing screams “efficiency” like spending $135 billion to prove firing people who collect your money might be a bad idea. Who could’ve guessed gutting the IRS and drowning everyone else in pointless weekly reports wouldn’t magically create a lean, hyper-competent government? But hey, at least we got a shiny new acronym and a short-lived agency to add to the “what were we thinking” section of future history books.