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Lasting Damage ... It's more than just a Passing Phase ... It's the Point [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2025-06-02

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Elections have consequences, they say.

So too, do reckless and largely illegal extra-constitutional government actions.

Anyone, in the market for one very over-used “chainsaw”?

DOGE says it has saved $160 billion. Those cuts have cost taxpayers $135 billion, one analysis says.

Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, says it has saved $160 billion through its push to root out wasteful or fraudulent government spending. But that effort may also have come at a cost for taxpayers, with a new estimate from a nonpartisan research and advocacy group estimating that DOGE's actions will cost $135 billion this fiscal year. The analysis seeks to tally the costs associated with putting tens of thousands of federal employees on paid leave, re-hiring mistakenly fired workers and lost productivity, according to the Partnership for Public Service (PSP), a nonpartisan nonprofit that focuses on the federal workforce. PSP's estimate is based on the $270 billion in annual compensation costs for the federal workforce, calculating the impact of DOGE's actions, from paid leave to productivity hits. The $135 billion cost to taxpayers doesn't include the expense of defending multiple lawsuits challenging DOGE's actions, nor the impact of estimated lost tax collections due to staff cuts at the IRS . DOGE has sought to slash federal spending by urging government workers to accept a deferred resignation plan, which allowed many employees to retain full pay and benefits through September without working. Another 24,000 government employees who were fired as part of the reform effort have since been rehired after a court ruling. www.cbsnews.com — April 28, 2025

How could DOGE cost taxpayers? Workers who generated revenue from the government have been fired, Stevenson points out. For example, staffing cuts at the IRS will mean the US brings in less revenue — but so will operating national parks short-staffed. Plus, a universe of litigation related to DOGE’s efforts to cancel contracts and fire workers seemingly without cause is percolating through courts. “In total, estimates suggest that what has been spent to generate these cuts may be as great as the cuts. In the long run, it’s not clear that DOGE generated any savings,” she said. Max Stier, CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, has estimated in a back-of-the-envelope way that DOGE cuts could end up costing the US $135 billion simply because it will need to retrain and rehire elements of the work force that have been let go. The federal workforce is literally in trauma — something Trump’s director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russ Vought, said was an aim of his. www.cnn.com — May 30, 2025

New “Cost of DOGE” initiative aims to inform the public and policymakers about the ongoing harms of recent federal government cuts WASHINGTON – The nonprofit, nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service today published two new resources examining how the public has been impacted by the Trump administration’s widespread federal government cuts during its first 100 days in office. Results of new public polling found that a majority of Americans believe that the Trump administration’s changes to the federal government’s workforce will have a negative impact on the American people , and that management of the federal government is headed in the wrong direction (57% and 58%, respectively). […] To accompany this data, the Partnership also published a new interactive series titled “100 Harms in 100 Days.” The series features stories from around the country to illustrate the cumulative impact of the Trump administration’s federal workforce cuts at the community, sector and individual level. […] The Department of Agriculture slashed more than $1 billion from two initiatives that supported food programs throughout the country, leaving food banks, school systems and local farmers reeling. Layoffs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention resulted in the shut down of work at the only facility in the country that can test and track the spread of viral hepatitis outbreaks that kill thousands of Americans every year. Teams of Food and Drug Administration scientists monitoring medical devices ranging from pathogen tests to AI cancer detection software to diabetes monitors and brain implants experienced major staff cuts, leaving remaining staff worried that the safety of devices could be compromised. [...] ourpublicservice.org — April 29, 2025

Moral of the story:

The proverb 'penny wise, pound foolish' was first recorded back in the eighteenth century. It represents how people can focus on being stingy with small amounts of money, but may be wasteful with larger sums. alexquigley.co.uk — Feb 22, 2025

Pennywise, is apparently NOT fond of PDB either:

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Trump has sat for only 12 ‘daily’ intelligence briefings since taking office

www.politico.com — May 10, 2025

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Which should lead one to ask, exactly who then, is “running the store”?

And who is going to end up paying for these “Everything Must Go” yard-sales —

Now that Elon has downloaded all the data, and finally left town?

“Buyer’s Remorse” should be the next phase, in this FAFO 21st century lark.

Now that “All the Adults” — have apparently left the building.

And they no longer have Biden to blame.

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