#government-efficiency

#government-efficiency

Alan Cole, senior economist at the Tax Foundation, took that bet, telling WSJ reporter Richard Rubin how and why he dropped $342,195.63 into a prediction-market wager on the Kalshi platform. Cole said that he looked at the terms of the Kalshi wager and saw an opportunity, because he did not believe anything Musk would do would significantly curtail spending on interest on the national debt or entitlements like Social Security and Medicare, especially as America's population continued to age.

In contrast to previous years, the Palo Alto City Council has set at least one very specific priority for 2026: find funding to acquire and renovate Cubberley Community Center. Cubberley was one of four priorities council approved for 2026 during its annual retreat at Mitchell Park Community Center on Saturday. The other three are: government efficiency; achieve near-term housing priority milestones; and enhance business vibrancy.

The City Council direction, now led by Mayor Vicki Veenker and Vice Mayor Greer Stone, marks a departure from previous agenda-setting retreats by replacing broader ideals with concrete topics. With Manhattan Beach Council member Amy Howorth serving as a facilitator for the meeting, which took place at the Mitchell Park Library, the council worked to clarify the terms "values," "priorities" and "objectives" before voting on its priorities for the year.

A key recommendation in the 77-page report is for the state government to return to an in-person work standard for all employees whose duties can be performed on-site, stating that the changes would improve collaboration among workers and service to the public. "While remote work arrangements were necessary during the pandemic, they are not a sustainable long-term model for an organization whose mission depends on teamwork, public access, and responsive service,"

Different officials within the Pentagon have reported various figures for savings attributed to DOGE, creating discrepancies and uncertainty about the exact amount of taxpayer dollars saved.

Edward Coristine, a prominent software engineer, was attacked by a group of teens while protecting his girlfriend during an attempted carjacking in Washington, D.C.

Government workers have important jobs that are critical to providing important services to taxpayers. If jobs are cut and those services aren't provided or aren't provided in a timely and competent way, there can be significant negative fallout.

Kupor emphasized that "OPM is its own agency" and will make decisions in the best interests of its operations, despite seeking to collaborate with the Department of Government Efficiency.

"President Trump believes creating non-career Schedule G positions will enhance government efficiency and accountability and improve services provided to taxpayers by increasing the horsepower for agency implementation of administration policy."

Stephen Ehikian stated, "the build back isn't just bringing it back to where it was before; it is rethinking the GSA," indicating a transformative approach to restructuring the agency.

Bannon criticized Musk's leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency, citing unfulfilled promises to cut significant waste, fraud, and abuse from government spending.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was established in 2025 to increase government transparency, modernize technology, and cut wasteful spending, ultimately aiming to save taxpayer money.

Gomez has accused her own agency under Carr's leadership of "weaponizing" its authority "to silence critics," and opening "sham investigations" into news outlets like NPR, PBS, ABC, CBS, and NBC.

"I'm fully in alignment with the need to in-house government capacity and government services," says Merici Vinton, a former U.S. Digital Service official.