YOUR MONEY — More on DOGE — What the Reporting Shows

More on DOGE — What the Reporting Shows

1. Big Discrepancy Between Claimed and Real Savings

   • Politico found that whereas DOGE claims ~$54.2 billion in “contract cancellation” savings, only $1.4 billion could be verified via clawbacks or de-obligations. Politico

   • NPR’s analysis matched DOGE’s contract list to public spending databases and estimated only $2.3 billion in actual or likely real savings from the canceled contracts. NPR

   • DOGE has repeatedly revised its “wall of receipts” downward: it quietly deleted billions in claimed savings after media scrutiny. NPR+2NPR+2

2. Many Contracts Yield No Real Savings

   • Nearly 40% of the contracts canceled by DOGE appear to produce zero savings, according to DOGE’s own posted “receipts.” CNBC+2https://www.wdtv.com+2

   • Why no savings? Because in many cases, those contracts had already been fully obligated — meaning the government had already committed the money (or even spent it). https://www.wdtv.com+1

   • As Charles Tiefer, a former government-contracting law professor, put it:

     “It’s like confiscating used ammunition … there’s nothing left in it.” https://www.wdtv.com

     

3. Accounting Tricks — Using “Ceiling Values”

   • A big part of the exaggeration comes from counting the maximum possible value (“ceiling”) of contracts instead of what was realistically going to be spent. PolitiFact+2NPR+2

   • Some of the contracts DOGE lists are “blanket purchase agreements” (BPAs). These aren’t firm orders — more like catalogs: the government can order from them if it needs to. Canceling a BPA doesn’t always save money because not all the “ceiling” was going to be spent. CNBC

   • Experts say that using ceiling values inflates the numbers and misleads the public about how much real money is being saved. NPR+1

4. Major Reporting Errors and Corrections

   • One glaring error: DOGE originally listed an $8 billion ICE contract as canceled, but that contract was actually only $8 million. NPR

   • Another: a $655 million USAID contract was apparently listed 3 times, triple counting the same item. NPR

   • After scrutiny, DOGE removed or revised more than 1,000 entries from its “wall of receipts” — reducing its previously claimed large savings. Reuters

5. Lease & Workforce Claims Also Questioned

   • DOGE claims additional savings from canceled leases and workforce reductions, but some experts argue that even these numbers are overstated or lack clarity. NPR

   • For lease savings, cost-benefit questions emerge: terminating leases may have “savings,” but what are the long-term costs (or the lost value)? Wikipedia

   • On workforce: DOGE reportedly has pushed out or gotten buyouts from tens of thousands of federal workers, but the long-term impact on efficiency and government capacity is unclear. Le Monde.fr

6. Lack of Verifiable “Cash Back” to Treasury

   • Even if DOGE “saves” money (in its accounting), that doesn’t necessarily mean the money is returned to the Treasury. Some “savings” are theoretical — based on de-obligation, not actual cash recovered. Politico

   • Experts note: just because a contract is canceled doesn’t guarantee that all unspent money is clawed back. Politico+1

7. Transparency Questions

   • While DOGE claims to provide transparency (through its receipts page), many entries lack sufficient identifying information to verify in third-party databases. Politico

   • The methods for calculating some “savings” are opaque; for example, assumptions used in workforce or regulatory cuts are not always publicly disclosed. NPR

   • There are legal questions: DOGE isn’t a standard government agency — it operates more like a temporary advisory/cut-team. Some experts worry about the legality, authority, and oversight. CNBC

Why This Matters — From a “Your Money” Perspective

• Taxpayer Risk of Illusion: If DOGE’s numbers are largely based on inflated ceilings and double-counts, then the “savings” might be more PR than real return to taxpayers.

• False Justification for Cuts: Using exaggerated figures to justify cutting contracts or laying off workers can undermine agencies’ capacity, potentially weakening government services in critical areas.

• Accountability Gap: Without full transparency, the public and Congress may have a hard time tracking whether DOGE’s “savings” are actually materializing.

• Cost of Errors: If DOGE cancels contracts or leases based on wrong assumptions, there may be downstream costs (e.g., legal battles, replacing canceled work, rehiring, re-contracting) that erase some of the “savings.”