Can An Old DOGE Learn New Tricks?

Elon Musk has abandoned DOGE, but Republicans are holding on.

WASHINGTON ― For congressional Republicans, DOGE really did age in dog years.

The government’s cost-cutting effort, inspired by a 2010s-era meme, was all the rage for the GOP last winter. Republicans were excited to have Elon Musk, a cool billionaire, lead their cause. In the House, they made a DOGE caucus, which is basically a fan club, and an official DOGE committee.

Eleven months later, the committee’s chair has resigned, DOGE failed to get anywhere close to its promise of $1 trillion in spending cuts, its activities got terrible reviews from the public, and Musk has not only abandoned the project, he’s suggested he regrets starting it.

“Instead of doing DOGE, I would have, basically, built ― worked on my companies,” Musk said on a recent podcast.

But Republicans on Capitol Hill aren’t ready to put DOGE down. House Oversight Committee chair James Comer (R-Ky.), whose panel includes the new Delivering on Government Efficiency subcommittee, said he’ll appoint a new chair after Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene resigns in early January.