Happy New Year 2025

Tag: Spending

Trump warns agency leaders against ‘wasteful spending’ in new memo

President Donald Trump issued an unsmiling warning to bureaucrats on Tuesday, ordering that leaders of government agencies begin to be “radically transparent” about spending.

The White House published a memo entitled “Radical Transparency About Wasteful Spending” on Tuesday afternoon, directed at the heads of executive departments and agencies.

The memo begins by arguing that the American government “spends too much money on programs, contracts, and grants that do not promote the interests of the American people.”

“For too long, taxpayers have subsidized ideological projects overseas and domestic organizations engaged in actions that undermine the national interest,” the note continues. “The American people have seen their tax dollars used to fund the passion projects of unelected bureaucrats rather than to advance the national interest.”

HOMAN TAKES VICTORY LAP AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CROSSINGS PLUMMET DURING TRUMP ADMIN: ‘HE IS DELIVERING’

U.S. President Donald Trump steps from Air Force One upon arrival in West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., February 16, 2025. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

“The American people have a right to see how the Federal Government has wasted their hard-earned wages.”

Trump continued the memo by ordering that all heads of executive departments and agencies must “take all appropriate actions to make public, to the maximum extent permitted by law…the complete details of every terminated program, cancelled contract, terminated grant, or any other discontinued obligation of Federal funds.”

“Agencies shall ensure that such publication occurs in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations, and the terms and conditions of the underlying contract, grant, or other award,” Trump continued.

EMMANUEL MACRON CALLS ‘EMERGENCY MEETING’ FOR EUROPEAN LEADERS TO DISCUSS TRUMP: REPORT

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House, where he signed an executive order, on Thursday, Feb. 13. (AP/Ben Curtis)

The memo came as Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) commission continues to audit government agencies with a mission to reduce waste. On Monday night, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared on “Hannity” to express support for DOGE’s audits.

“[L]isten to the words from those Democrat politicians, you would think you are listening to President Trump, Elon Musk and our entire administration, who are saying the exact same things that Democrat politicians promised the American people they would do for decades,” Leavitt said. “President Trump is just the first president in our lifetimes to actually do it.”

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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media before boarding Marine One at the White House in Washington, D.C. on January 31, 2025. (BRYAN DOZIER/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

“And now you see the Democrat Party and the mainstream media spiraling out of control about a very simple promise: rooting out waste, fraud and abuse from our federal bureaucracy,” she continued. “This is a promise President Trump campaigned on. He is now delivering on it.”

Andrea Margolis is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Readers can send story tips to [email protected].

February 18, 2025
Top federal agency exposed for spending billions on migrants in a single year

The Biden administration spent tens of billions of dollars on grants to migrants and refugees through one of its government agencies, including over $10 billion in just one year, according to a new watchdog report.

The watchdog group Open the Books looked at grants to nonprofits awarded by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement. Its responsibilities include caring for unaccompanied migrant children who crossed the southern border illegally and refugees entering legally.

The watchdog found that in FY 2021, it distributed $2.4 billion in grants to nonprofits. In FY 2022, it distributed $3.4 billion, then that number skyrocketed up to $10 billion in FY 2023 before being reduced to $4.2 billion in FY 2024.

‘CLAWED BACK’: DHS CHIEF NOEM SECURES EYE-POPPING SUM SENT TO NYC FOR MIGRANT HOTELS

Homeless migrants wait in line to receive food and clothing donations in Tompkins Square Park on Jan. 20, 2024 in New York City. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

The numbers surged amid a historic migrant crisis at the southern border which plagued the Biden administration between 2021 and 2024.

According to the watchdog, the money included spending to help migrants save for car and home purchases, while another gave out business and personal loans, along with other programs for legal aid and cultural orientation.

“We’re hurting American taxpayers. People in places like North Carolina, Los Angeles that have lost everything,” Open the Books CEO John Hart told Fox News. “How is it moral to ask them to pay the bill for someone who wants to come to this country illegally? That’s outrageous.”

DOGE PUTS DEI ON CHOPPING BLOCK WITH TERMINATION OF OVER $370M IN EDUCATION DEPARTMENT GRANTS

Xavier Becerra, then-secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), speaks during a news conference at the HHS headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. (Photographer: Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The revelation comes amid a government-wide scrutiny of funding, including funding for migrants, by the Trump administration and led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced last week that it had taken back $59 million in FEMA funds earmarked for hotels housing migrants in New York City and had fired four FEMA employees involved in the payments being distributed.

“There will not be a single penny spent that goes against the interest and safety of the American people,” a DHS spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration has been ramping up border security and cracking down on releases into the interior. It has suspended refugee resettlement, taken off limits imposed on Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and declared a national emergency at the southern border.

Adam Shaw is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital, primarily covering immigration and border security.

He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter.

February 18, 2025
GOP chairman responds after protesters are tossed from USAID spending hearing

A group of protesters attempted to derail a USAID hearing at the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday, demanding that President Donald Trump’s administration restore aid funding.

Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., poked fun at the protesters for being behind the times after they interrupted opening statements from witnesses before the committee.

“PEPFAR saves lives. Restore AIDS funding now,” the protesters chanted as they were forced out of the chamber.

“I guess these guys don’t watch the news. They didn’t realize that PREPFAR was one of the many programs that did prove to be life-saving so the funding was restored,” Mast said. “Somebody better give them a link to, I don’t know, maybe Fox News or something like that.”

RUBIO PAUSES FOREIGN AID FROM STATE DEPARTMENT AND USAID TO ENSURE IT PUTS ‘AMERICA FIRST’

Chairman Brain Mast suggested protesters should read more news articles. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

PEPFAR is a global AIDS relief program that has been credited with saving over 20 million lives since it was created under President George W. Bush.

The program received a waiver from Trump’s administration to continue its work despite the wider funding freeze impacting USAID and state department aid programs.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also created a wider exemption for “life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter, and subsistence assistance, as well as supplies and reasonable administrative costs as necessary to deliver such assistance,” Congressional Republicans noted in a memo.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave an exemption to the funding freeze for programs that are “life-saving,” among other things. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, Pool)

Republicans have blasted the wider wasteful spending at USAID and the state department, however.

NONCITIZEN VOTER CRACKDOWN LED BY HOUSE GOP AHEAD OF 2026 MIDTERMS

The memo also highlighted funding programs including “$39,652 to host seminars at the Edinburgh International Book Festival on gender identity and racial equality through the State Department” and “$425,622 to help Indonesian coffee companies become more climate and gender friendly through USAID.”

USAID has been folded into the State Department. (Getty Images)

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Other priorities listed included “$14 million in cash vouchers for migrants at the southern border through the State Department,” “$446,700 to promote the expansion of atheism in Nepal through the State Department” and “$32,000 for an LGBTQ-centered comic book in Peru.”

Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to [email protected], or on Twitter: @Hagstrom_Anders.

February 13, 2025
Investor tells CNBC the time of ‘white flag’ GOP is over as DOGE targets wasteful spending

Investor and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale defended the Department of Government Efficiency, arguing it brings much-needed tech sector sensibility to the American government.

Investor and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale defended the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) hasty process to overhaul government spending, arguing that a few mistakes are all part of the process.

Lonsdale was interviewed on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Wednesday, where he touted the success of DOGE targeting wasteful or frivolous government spending, arguing that, “in 20 days, we’ve done what we couldn’t do in multiple generations.”

The entrepreneur suggested that previous efforts by lawmakers in the Reagan era to curb spending failed because they were not tech experts like those at DOGE, “and so when they went to the bureaucracy, and they asked questions, there’s so many ways of obscuring and blocking and deterring, and so what Elon did is he got root access, and he went to the tech systems themselves.”

CNBC co-host Rebecca Quick warned that as much as she agrees with cutting waste in theory, cancer payments and legitimate aid to those starving in Africa may be affected amid DOGE’s efforts.

Investor and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale defended DOGE’s approach during a lengthy interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” (CNBC)

DOGE SLASHES OVER $100M IN DEI FUNDING AT EDUCATION DEPARTMENT: ‘WIN FOR EVERY STUDENT’

“I think the legitimate stuff needs to be turned back on,” Lonsdale agreed, but argued, “I do think Africa can now pay for more of this themselves. South Africa is spending money suing Israel. They’re spending money supporting political parties calling for the death for White people. Maybe they should redirect that money to pay for their own clinics.”

“I just think there’s a question about how careful either Elon or others need to be,” co-host Andrew Sorkin said.

Another co-host of the show, Joe Kernen, replied, “Slash and burn a lot of this stuff.”

Lonsdale argued, however, that changing times call for new tactics.

“Andrew, we’ve been careful for 50 years, right? You have a bunch of white flag Republicans, you have a bunch of people on the left making money off of it, people on the right making money off it too. Everyone wants to be careful and keep it going. You’re not going to get perfect answers in life. I think this is by far the best thing for our civilization is to very boldly confront this,” he said. “And this is more, I guess, of a tech world way than a D.C. way.”

Elon Musk arrives on Capitol Hill on December 5, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images)

PALANTIR CEO TOUTS ELON MUSK’S DOGE, ABILITY TO HOLD ‘SACRED COW OF THE DEEP STATE’ ACCOUNTABLE

“You’re probably right that there are going to be some things that need to be turned back on. There’s going to be some things that were mislabeled that no one knew what they were. But it’s a mess. And so, it’s a mess. And it’s such a mess that I think being bold is the right answer. I get it’s going to have a few mistakes, but I’d rather have those few mistakes and fix it.

He later appeared to reference Musk’s SpaceX ambitions and quipped, “Being careful and slow isn’t how we get to Mars.”

DOGE Caucus founder Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., on Elon Musk’s efforts to curtail government spending and a discovery regarding social security.

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February 13, 2025
DOGE chair Joni Ernst keeping close contact with Elon Musk as Trump admin slashes spending

Senate Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus Chairwoman Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said she talks to Trump-aligned billionaire Elon Musk every couple of days as he spearheads the administration’s effort to slash wasteful spending.

“We communicate back and forth every few days or so,” she told Fox News Digital in an interview. “I’ll send additional ideas that we come up with.”

According to Ernst, during a meeting at President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in November, she gave Musk “an eight-page memorandum blueprint with a number of cost-saving ideas.”

SCOOP: TRUMP BUDGET CHIEF VOUGHT TELLS GOP SENATORS $175B NEEDED ‘IMMEDIATELY’ FOR BORDER SECURITY

Elon Musk and Joni Ernst have been staying connected on DOGE. (Reuters/ Getty Images)

“He literally is taking that and running with it,” the Iowa Republican remarked.

She said she simply sends new ideas directly to Musk, and “pretty soon you’ll see a tweet out on X.”

When asked whether she thought she would ever be working to audit the government with the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, as well as the owner of X, Ernst laughed, “Never in a million years.”

TRUMP ON VERGE OF NEXT CABINET VICTORY WITH LATE-NIGHT TULSI GABBARD SENATE VOTE

The Congressional DOGE Caucus now has over 100 members, Fox News Digital was told. (House of Representatives/Getty)

Since Trump took office last month, DOGE has taken swift action to audit agencies and departments within the executive branch, rooting out contracts, programs and spending that Trump and Musk consider unnecessary or wasteful.

The effort has been met by Democrats with protests, as lawmakers have shown up outside the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of Treasury and the Department of Education to demonstrate. Some Democrats have even attempted to enter the buildings, but were prevented.

NOEM, HEGSETH, BONDI PLEAD WITH CONGRESS FOR MORE BORDER FUNDING AMID LARGE-SCALE DEPORTATIONS

Protesters descended on the building that once housed USAID. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

On the other hand, Republicans have cheered the initiative. For example, Ernst told Fox News Digital that DOGE’s actions so far have been “tremendous.”

As for criticisms of how DOGE’s staffers are conducting their audit and what information they are gaining access to, the Iowa Republican maintained that it is completely legal in her opinion. “This is the executive branch and they are scrutinizing the executive branch. So, of course, it’s legal,” she said.

LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER: THE LITTLE-KNOWN TRUMP NOMINEE WHO MAY NEED TO RELY ON DEMS

Joni Ernst is chairwoman of the DOGE caucus. (Reuters)

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“There is nothing in the Constitution that says the president cannot scrutinize the expenditures, especially when those dollars are going to programs that members here in Congress did not anticipate,” she noted, referencing jaw-dropping programs being uncovered by DOGE, showing significant money going towards Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), among other initiatives.

Fox News Digital reached out to Musk’s DOGE for comment.

Julia Johnson is a politics writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business, leading coverage of the U.S. Senate. She was previously a politics reporter at the Washington Examiner.

Follow Julia’s reporting on X at @JuliaaJohnson_ and send tips to [email protected].

February 12, 2025
‘DOGE boys’: Dems fume over spending cut spree at rally outside Trump’s next potential target

Democratic lawmakers are fuming over the “DOGE boys” and their recent crackdown on federal spending, holding a rally outside the newly formed cost-cutting department’s potential next target: the Social Security Administration (SSA).

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has been working with federal agencies to identify and cut wasteful spending. Most recently, the group began probing the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for potential fraud — a move that wasn’t welcomed by Democratic lawmakers who warned that the SSA could be the next agency on the target list.

On Monday, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, Rep. Kweisi Mfume, D-Ma., Rep. Johnny Olszewski, D-Ma., and Rep. Sarah Elfreth, D-Ma., gathered for a rally outside the SSA headquarters in Baltimore to criticize DOGE’s efforts.

“Every time you hear DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, you just remember it is the department of government evil,” said Mfume, a Maryland-based Democrat.

DOGE CANCELS FUNDING FOR FAUCI MUSEUM EXHIBIT

Rep. Kweisi Mfume at a hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill on March 8, 2023, in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla)

Fox News Digital previously reported that according to Just Facts, a nonprofit research institute, SSA disbursed roughly $2 billion in fraudulent or improper payments in 2022, which it calculated was enough “to pay 89,947 retired workers the average annual old-age benefit of $21,924 for 2023.”

Democrats, however, have claimed that Americans’ Social Security benefits could be targeted.

ELON MUSK EMBRACES X PLATFORM AS KEY TOOL IN DOGE TRANSPARENCY AMID ONSLAUGHT OF ATTACKS FROM DEMS

“We have one simple message, which is: Elon Musk, keep your hands off our Social Security,” Van Hollen told the crowd.

Sen. Van Hollen told Musk to ‘keep your hands off our Social Security.’ (Getty Images)

“Over the last 21 days, we have seen Elon Musk conducting illegal raids on federal agencies with his DOGE crew,” the senator said. “This is a recipe for corruption by the DOGE boys.”

Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, D-Ma., speaking during the rally, claimed that “the intention of this administration is to make us feel demoralized, to make many of us feel frightened, to incite fear, to silence people.”

Many of DOGE’s targets have ranged from canceling a number of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives at federal agencies to consolidating duplicative agencies and programs.

Angela Alsobrooks, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate from Maryland, and Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., are seen while greeting voters on the state’s primary election day at Lewisdale Elementary School in Chillum, Md., on Tuesday, May 14, 2024. (Tom Williams)

DOGE, as of the end of January, said that it was saving the federal government $1 billion a day, mostly by “stopping the hiring of people into unnecessary positions, deletion of DEI and stopping improper payments to foreign organizations, all consistent with the President’s Executive Orders.”

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The efforts have been widely rejected by Democratic lawmakers, who have been gathering outside government agency headquarters in protest of the DOGE agenda.

Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller and Eric Revell contributed to this report.

Aubrie Spady is a Writer for Fox News Digital.

February 10, 2025
Americans’ Super Bowl spending to rise despite inflation worries

Former NFL player Jake Bequette gives his take on the celebrity culture shift to the right and Sunday’s big game on ‘Varney & Co.’

Americans are getting ready for the Super Bowl to kick off on Sunday, and while spending on festivities related to the big game is up, more fans are wanting to dial it back than wanting to spend more, a new report found.

A study by LendingTree found that 75% of Americans said they’ll tune into the Super Bowl but that of those who plan to watch nearly one-third, or 31%, say they’ll spend less on Super Bowl festivities than last year – well above the 19% who say they’ll spend more. Half of Americans say their spending will be the same as last year.

Americans who do plan to spend on Super Bowl festivities expect to spend $142 on average, an increase of 22% from $116 a year ago. The top items they plan to spend on include food and beverages, as well as fan gear.

“Even though more people are saying they’re going to spend less, the average amount for people who are going to spend was up fairly significantly,” Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree, told FOX Business. “You’re talking about $25 which isn’t going to change most people’s lives, but it’s not nothing either when you’re just talking about getting together to watch a football game with friends.”

FOOD DEALS ABOUND FOR SUPER BOWL: WHAT CHAINS ARE OFFERING

Jalen Hurts (left) of the Philadelphia Eagles and Patrick Mahomes (right) of the Kansas City Chiefs stand on stage next to the Vince Lombardi Trophy during Super Bowl LIX Opening Night at Caesars Superdome on February 3, 2025, in New Orleans, Louisia (Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images / Getty Images)

“It’s a pretty significant divide there and, again, I just think that you can look back and blame so many things on inflation and high prices and high interest rates and all that, and I think this is another one of those cases most likely,” Schulz said.

The report noted that 41% of Super Bowl watchers say they’ll place bets related to the game, including 66% of Gen Zers, 59% of parents with young children, 56% of Millennials and 51% of men. Most plan to place smaller bets, with just 41% planning to wager $100 or more and a similar number reporting they’ll use a credit card to place their bets.

“Certainly, as we’ve seen since the pandemic, sometimes people just like spending more on what they want to spend on in order to kind of make up for how stressful a year it’s been or crazy things have been,” Schulz said.

DURING SUPER BOWL LIX, FANS WILL EAT A STAGGERING AMOUNT OF CHICKEN WINGS

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – NOVEMBER 03: Saquon Barkley #26 of the Philadelphia Eagles reverse hurdles over Jarrian Jones #22 of the Jacksonville Jaguars in the second quarter at Lincoln Financial Field on November 03, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylv (Elsa/Getty Images / Getty Images)

LendingTree’s findings come as a separate study conducted by the Bank of America Institute showed that Americans’ spending on spectator sports reached an all-time high in 2024.

The Bank of America Market Landscape Insights study found that consumers spend an average of $1,122 on sports annually – a figure that includes everything from attending games to buying athletic equipment.

SUPER BOWL LIX BATTLE: CHIEFS AND EAGLES ARE BOTH VALUED IN THE BILLIONS

Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with Taylor Swift after a 17-10 victory against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game at M&T Bank Stadium on January 28, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Bank of America’s report delved into the local economic impact of live sporting events by looking at last year’s Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, which pushed retail spending 8% higher compared to the rest of the month.

Super Bowl LIX will air on FOX this Sunday, Feb. 9, at 6:30pm Eastern. The game is being played in New Orleans, Louisiana.

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The Kansas City Chiefs – led by Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce – will look to make history as they pursue a third straight Super Bowl title.

They will face the Philadelphia Eagles, as Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley look to bring the Chiefs’ run to an end.

February 8, 2025
Top federal agency with history of wasteful spending could be next DOGE target

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) chief Elon Musk’s efforts to clean up waste and fraud in the federal government will soon shift its focus to the Social Security Administration (SSA) in a move likely to create a firestorm with Democrats similar to reactions to the recent measures taken against the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The SSA, created by the Social Security Act under President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935 and tasked with establishing a federal benefits system for older Americans, will soon become a focus of DOGE, according to a report from Semafor that was not denied by the White House when contacted by Fox News Digital.

While several Democrats — including Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., in a post on X — have been quick to accuse this move as being aimed at slashing Social Security benefits for the elderly, several areas with potential waste exist in the agency that don’t involve cutting current benefits.

Just Facts, a nonprofit research institute, previously reported that the agency disbursed roughly $2 billion in fraudulent or improper payments in 2022, which it calculated was enough “to pay 89,947 retired workers the average annual old-age benefit of $21,924 for 2023.”

‘DISTURBING’: WHISTLEBLOWER FUMES AT BIDEN-ERA AGENCY PROMOTING DEI PROGRAM AS DEPARTMENT’S ‘MISSION’

Elon Musk’s DOGE efforts are set to focus on Social Security. (Getty Images)

Just Facts explained that through a policy known as “administrative finality,” once the “SSA mistakenly overpays a beneficiary for more than four years, it does not recover past overpayments and deliberately continues to make future overpayments excepting cases of fraud.”

The SSA sent roughly 7,000 federal employees disability benefits in 2008 while they were still taking wages from federal jobs, according to a 2010 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

The GAO estimated that about 1,500 of those individuals “may have improperly received benefits” since their wages went beyond maximum income thresholds. The GAO investigation also found that over 71,000 “stimulus checks” were sent by the Obama administration to people who were deceased, including 63,481 people whose deaths had been previously reported to the agency.

MEET THE YOUNG TEAM OF SOFTWARE ENGINEERS SLASHING GOVERNMENT WASTE AT DOGE: REPORT

Musk’s team has moved to slash USAID’s $40 billion spending budget. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“Social Security will not be touched, it will only be strengthened,” President Donald Trump said during a press conference on Friday. “We have illegal immigrants on Social Security and we’re going to find out who they are and take them out.”

Trump added, “We’re going to strengthen our Social Security, etc. We’re not going to touch it other than to make it stronger. But we have people that shouldn’t be on, and those people we have to weed out, most of them, or many of them, so far, have been illegal immigrants.”

On Friday afternoon, White House Principal Deputy Communications Director Alex Pfeiffer posted a report on X from the Center for Immigration Studies in 2021 that said, “We estimate that there are 2.65 million illegal immigrants with Social Security numbers.”

Trump added that DOGE will go through “everything” when it comes to waste and fraud in the federal government.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for the SSA said, “We remain focused and vigilant on the integrity of our programs and take seriously our responsibilities to deter fraud, waste, and abuse.”

The Social Security Administration was created by the Social Security Act under President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

DOGE has dominated news headlines over the past week as Musk’s team has moved to slash USAID’s $40 billion spending budget and put on leave the vast majority of its employees, as photos of the sign at the door of the agency’s Washington, D.C., headquarters being taken down have circulated on social media.

Musk has said that both he and Trump “agreed” that the agency should be “shut down.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has been named acting director of the independent agency, on Monday echoed the sentiment, telling reporters, “USAID is not functioning.”

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“It needs to be aligned with the national interest of the U.S. They’re not a global charity, these are taxpayer dollars. People are asking simple questions. What are they doing with the money?” Rubio continued. “We are spending taxpayers’ money. We owe the taxpayers assurances that it furthers our national interest.”

Democrats held a rally outside the Treasury Department earlier this week blasting the DOGE efforts as a threat to democracy.

“Elon Musk is a Nazi nepo baby, a godless lawless billionaire, who no one elected,” Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., said at a rally, sparking pushback from conservatives on social media.

“Elon, this is the American people. This is not your trashy Cybertruck that you can just dismantle, pick apart, and sell the pieces of.”

Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.

Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to [email protected].

February 7, 2025
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to House Republicans releasing their tax and spending cut plan

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House Republican leaders spent nearly five hours at the White House on Thursday – some of it with President Donald Trump – as they tried to finalize the outline of their tax and spending cut package.

The plan is to release a framework with some numbers in the coming days.

Fox is told to expect north of $1 trillion in spending cuts. The bill would make permanent the 2017 Trump tax cuts. It is also likely the bill includes a provision to bar taxes on tips.

‘POWER GRAB’: JEFFRIES UNVEILS DATA PROTECTION BILL AMID DOGE CRACKDOWN

Congress is racing to be ready to execute the recommendations of President Donald Trump’s new DOGE commission. (Getty Images)

House Republicans hoped to have a bill ready to go before the Budget Committee this week after their retreat at Mar-a-Lago.

But no dice.

Republicans hope to prep this bill before the House Budget Committee next week.

DOGE TARGETS MEDICARE AGENCY, LOOKING FOR FRAUD

House Speaker Mike Johnson, right, discusses President Donald Trump’s agenda during an appearance on “Sunday Morning Futures.” (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | Photo by Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty Images/ Fox News Channel)

When asked if a plan would be unveiled Friday, Speaker Mike Johnson told Fox News, “nothing today” on paper or details of a budget package.

He said the committee markup may come Tuesday, but that there are a couple of details to “work out.”

Republicans need a budget framework adopted on the floor so they can use the budget reconciliation tool to bypass a Senate filibuster. No budget? No reconciliation option.

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House GOPers are feeling pressure from Senate Republicans who are pressing ahead with their own plan. Senate Republicans dine at Mar-a-Lago tonight with President Trump.

House Republicans are worried if they stumble at moving first, they could get jammed by the Senate.

Chad Pergram currently serves as a senior congressional correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.

February 7, 2025
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to House Republicans releasing their tax and spending cut plan Friday

Join Fox News for access to this content

Plus special access to select articles and other premium content with your account – free of charge.

By entering your email and pushing continue, you are agreeing to Fox News’ Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, which includes our Notice of Financial Incentive.

Please enter a valid email address.

Having trouble? Click here.

House Republican leaders spent nearly five hours at the White House yesterday – some of it with President Donald Trump – as they tried to finalize the outline of their tax and spending cut package.

The plan is to release a framework with some numbers today.

Fox is told to expect north of $1 trillion in spending cuts. The bill would make permanent the 2017 Trump tax cuts. It is also likely the bill includes a provision to bar taxes on tips.

‘POWER GRAB’: JEFFRIES UNVEILS DATA PROTECTION BILL AMID DOGE CRACKDOWN

Congress is racing to be ready to execute the recommendations of President Donald Trump’s new DOGE commission. (Getty Images)

House Republicans hoped to have a bill ready to go before the Budget Committee this week after their retreat at Mar-a-Lago.

But no dice.

Republicans hope to prep this bill before the House Budget Committee next week.

DOGE TARGETS MEDICARE AGENCY, LOOKING FOR FRAUD

House Speaker Mike Johnson, right, discusses President Donald Trump’s agenda during an appearance on “Sunday Morning Futures.” (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | Photo by Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty Images/ Fox News Channel)

Republicans need a budget framework adopted on the floor so they can use the budget reconciliation tool to bypass a Senate filibuster. No budget? No reconciliation option.

House GOPers are feeling pressure from Senate Republicans who are pressing ahead with their own plan. Senate Republicans dine at Mar-a-Lago tonight with President Trump.

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House Republicans are worried if they stumble at moving first, they could get jammed by the Senate.

Chad Pergram currently serves as a senior congressional correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.

February 7, 2025