SINGH: A Roadmap For DOGE To Succeed

Government and efficiency are words that seem at odds with each other in the same sentence. However, when you add Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, perhaps these words cannot only co-exist, but work together. Like almost everything imagined by the incoming Trump 47 Administration, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is transformational. The most remarkable part is its co-leaders. Mr. Musk and Mr. Ramaswamy are borne not of the public sector, but rather, they are highly successful business titans.

Fiscal reform has been attempted before, yet the current debt clock advances literally every minute. One such attempt was in 2010 by President Barack Obama, who created the “National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform,” also known as Simpson-Bowles after its leadership, former Senator Alan Simpson and former White House chief of staff, Erskine Bowles. It was composed of 18 people, mostly sitting members of Congress. The required supermajority vote of 14 wasn’t achieved to implement its recommendations.

Before that, there was “The Private Sector Survey on Cost Control,” referred to as the Grace Commission after its director, CEO J. Peter Grace. Established by President Ronald Reagan in 1982, and funded entirely by the private sector, it is a better historical precedent for DOGE. Grace tapped into private sector expertise on eliminating waste, fraud and abuse. He utilized 161 experts and 36 task forces to make recommendations for fiscal reform without raising taxes, reducing defense spending or necessary entitlement programs. Grace assessed that “One third of all their [citizens] taxes is consumed by waste and inefficiency in the Federal Government as we identified in our survey.”

A compelling aspect of DOGE is the dual directive to address fiscal reform as well as the scope of government. Here is a list of recommendations that DOGE can follow to achieve success in both.

First, DOGE should plan to right size the executive branch. It should review each department and agency to determine its core mission, which should be traceable back to Article II of the Constitution. If such mission doesn’t fit within the federal government, a further evaluation should determine what is left reserved for the states, as set forth in the Tenth Amendment. An agency that serves a critical national interest can be consolidated into a department. DOGE should also evaluate if certain agencies have functions that are better left to the private sector.

Second, determinations should be made about locating parts of the executive branch outside of Washington. Some functions need to be housed and conducted in the capital. However, many can be moved to the interior of America. If these divisions then hire from the local population rather than from the permanent bureaucracy in Washington, policy will better reflect the perspectives of all of the American people. Personnel is policy.

Third, they should cut expenditures without compromising programs that provide necessary benefits. This can be accomplished by identifying superfluous and duplicative administrative and operational costs. There are often five government employees assigned to do work that could be done more effectively by just one. In recent years, there has been creation of initiatives such as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), which have nothing to do with the role of effective government.

Next, foreign spending should be addressed. Advocates of foreign aid often cite that foreign affairs is around one percent of the overall budget. This number doesn’t account for all such spending, including the trillions of dollars in overseas conflicts. Past administrations have attempted State Department reform from within the building. DOGE should study these failed attempts and conduct its own review, which can succeed since it will be formulated externally.

Finally, DOGE should determine where it will need to work with Congress. Most executive orders can be rescinded unilaterally. Therefore, in order to create sustainable change, certain new measures should be codified. DOGE will have, at minimum, a two-year window for a relatively cooperative Congress. Legislation will avoid the costly ping-pong effect of actions enacted and reversed with each new Administration. DOGE should identify key members of Congress who will champion its findings longer-term.

A final statement from Mr. Grace to President Reagan in 1984: “If the American people realized how rapidly Federal Government spending is likely to grow under existing legislated programs, I am convinced they would compel their elected representatives to ‘get the Government off their backs.’” With their broader popular appeal, Mr. Musk and Mr. Ramaswamy can achieve buy-in from the American people who will be the ultimate beneficiaries of their DOGE vision.

Manisha Singh is Principal at Sunstone Strategy Group and former Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller.