Trump deploys Elon Musk's DOGE to audit the huge budget of the Pentagon

In a bold move to address the increasing inefficiency in government spending, President Donald Trump announced that the newly established (DOGE) Government Efficiency Department, headed by tech mogul Elon Musk, will begin auditing the Pentagon's massive $824 billion budget. This decision, revealed at a press conference at the White House with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, was made after the Department of Defense failed to pass the audit for the seventh consecutive year. The latest reports indicate that the Pentagon was unable to properly account for 63% of its $3.8 trillion in assets in the 2024 audit. The situation was equally dire in 2022, when they lost 61% of their $3.5 trillion in assets. Economic analysts estimate that the financial chaos of the Pentagon may not be cleaned up until at least 2031, making Trump's decision to bring DOGE into the mix a much-needed intervention. As government agencies face increasing pressure to tighten budgets, Musk's team is expected to change the status quo. Elon's group is controversial in government agencies While DOGE has attracted attention by conducting audits at the United States International Development Agency (USAID) and the Department of Education, the latest expansion of DOGE into the Department of Energy (DOE) is causing significant political instability. Energy Minister Chris Wright confirmed in an interview with CNBC that three DOGE employees are currently in the agency to prepare for an audit. However, Wright also reassured the public that they do not have access to nuclear secrets, amid growing concerns that unchecked individuals may be handling sensitive government data. Despite the assurances, the involvement of (, a 23-year-old former SpaceX intern, has sparked much controversy. Reports indicate that ) was granted access to critical IT systems at the Department of Energy, including email and Microsoft 365, despite objections from government security officials and lawyers. Wright defended the move, comparing the DOGE group to "young advisors" brought in to enhance efficiency. However, many in the Democratic Party are questioning how such a young person could bypass government's stringent security measures. The racial discrimination scandal shook DOGE as employees resigned The situation escalated further when another member of DOGE, 25-year-old Marko Elez, resigned after being found running a social media account with racially discriminatory content. Elez had previously been granted access to the Department of the Treasury's payment system, where trillions of dollars in federal transactions are processed. However, his access was quickly revoked after his online activities were exposed. In a major development, a federal judge also issued a restraining order preventing Musk from further involvement in the activities of the Department of the Treasury. Vice President JD Vance has spoken out in defense of Elez, arguing that his past social media behavior should not permanently damage his career. "We shouldn't let foolish tweets destroy someone's life," Vance declared. Trump agrees with this view, saying, "If the vice president says so, I support him." Elon Musk continues to stir controversy by conducting a public opinion poll on X (previously Twitter) asking users whether Elez should be restored or not. The poll collected 385,247 votes, with 78% in favor of restoring Elez and only 22% opposed. Democratic Party opposes the influence of Elon Musk The Democratic Party has increased its opposition to Musk's growing influence in government issues, especially regarding his control over DOGE personnel. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, has sent a strongly worded letter demanding transparency about who has access to the government's financial system. Wyden specifically targets Elez's read-write access to the Treasury's payment infrastructure—contrary to previous statements by Treasury officials that DOGE staff only have read access. “If this is true, the Department of Finance has intentionally deceived or blatantly lied to the Congress,” Wyden wrote, requesting a detailed log of Elez's activities in the system. He also questioned whether a similar security verification process used for senior DOGE official Tom Krause, who is empowered to conduct classified verification, is applied to other members like Elez or not. In addition, Wyden expressed concerns about Dan Katz, a senior associate of Musk, allegedly instructing Department of Finance employees to temporarily suspend foreign aid payments and control federal spending. If true, this would mark an unprecedented level of external influence on the financial operations of the United States. What will be the next step for DOGE? Despite the increasing controversy, Trump continues to firmly support Musk and the DOGE initiative. The Pentagon's audit is expected to begin in the coming weeks, and those involved believe that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Internal Revenue Service IRS may be the next targets on DOGE's list. With the Republican Party regrouping after Musk and the Democratic Party increasing oversight, the battle for government efficiency, transparency, and security is not yet over. The question remains: will DOGE revolutionize government operations or create more chaos in an already complex system?