FOX First Broadcast: Vivek Ramaswamy, who was recently selected by President-elect Donald Trump to head the nascent Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) alongside tech billionaire Elon Musk, says, “There are many challenges ahead.'' He said there are some “low-hanging fruit” to get rid of . Aiming to “reduce waste” through administrative actions when President Trump takes office.
“One of the low-hanging fruit is to look at areas that are under the jurisdiction of the executive branch. “You can actually eliminate a lot of money that you have.'' Fraud, fraud, and abuse occur even in entitlement programs that carry enormous frictional costs, ultimately taming the administrative state itself to a scale that would have made the founding fathers proud,” Ramaswamy said. Unmuted, spoke in the Republican Party. Podcast with Senator Marsha Blackburn.
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Vivek Ramaswamy (left) and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) (right) (Photo by: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)/(Photo by: Shannon Finney/Getty Images for RIAA))
Musk and Ramaswamy told X (formerly Twitter) last week that they would also focus on cutting defense spending while leading the DOGE advisory board.
“We need to strengthen our military by focusing on its 'effectiveness', rather than just reflexively increasing defense spending,” Ramaswamy wrote.
He noted that DOGE will expire in July 2026, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
“I think it was Reagan who famously said there is no government program without life. That's the best evidence we have about eternal life,” Ramaswamy said. “And, you know, I don't think it has to be that way.”
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President Trump announced on Tuesday, November 12, 2024, that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswami will lead the Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”). (Getty Images)
Blackburn added that he has filed a bill to suspend federal pay raises and hiring until DOGE's recommendations are implemented, and a federal workforce reform bill that advocates for a shift from tenure-based promotions to a merit-based system. Ta.
“And these are things that need to be enacted,” Blackburn said. “I’m so happy that President Trump said now is the time, and I’m so happy that he said you and Elon are the people to make this happen.”
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In announcing the Office of Government Efficiency, President Trump said the commission would help his administration “reduce excessive regulation, reduce wasteful spending and reorganize federal agencies.”
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) recently announced the creation of a new subcommittee in the 119th Congress to address the Department of Government Efficiency.
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Congress rushes to prepare to implement President Trump's new DOGE commission recommendations (Getty Images)
House Republicans are also pushing for spending cuts. Last week, Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-Okla.) introduced a new bill, the Duplicate Subsidy Efficiency Reduction (DOGE) Act, which would establish a system to reduce duplicative government subsidies from multiple departments.
“This is a big undertaking,” Ramaswamy said. “But the fact that we take the public and even allow the public to participate in the broadcast areas where we encounter government waste and bureaucracy and make this not just top-down. I think it can be done, but also from the bottom up.”
Fox News Digital's Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
