Shootout in DOGE City: What can the new sheriffs in town actually do to cut government inefficiency? (Peter Van Buren, Dec 16, 2024, American Conservative)
One obstacle the duo cannot overcome is the math of the federal budget. Roughly 60 percent of the budget is mandatory spending—things like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Trump promised to protect those programs. Another 10 percent of the budget is spent on paying interest on the national debt, also untouchable. That leaves around 30 percent of the budget “discretionary,” though roughly half of that goes to defense spending, which Trump also vowed not to cut. That remaining 15 percent of the budget, non-defense discretionary spending, is already at its lowest level ever as a percentage of GDP.
It’s busy work for the problem kids.