Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy bring Trump’s DOGE to Capitol Hill

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy bring Trump’s DOGE to Capitol Hill
Tesla CEO Elon Musk (R), Co-Chair of the newly announced Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) carries his son on his shoulders at the U.S. Capitol following a meeting with businessman Vivek Ramaswamy (L), Co-Chair of the newly announced Department of Government Efficiency, Rep. Kat Cammack (C), and other members of the U.S. Congress on December 05, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Updated 06 December 2024
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Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy bring Trump’s DOGE to Capitol Hill

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy bring Trump’s DOGE to Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON: Billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy spent several hours Thursday swapping ideas with lawmakers about President-elect Donald Trump’s DOGE initiative to dismantle parts of the federal government.
Meeting behind closed doors at the Capitol, Musk told the mostly Republican lawmakers they would be keeping a “naughty and nice” list of those who join in the budget slashing proposals and those who don’t, according to lawmakers who attended.
“We’re going to see a lot of change around here in Washington,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, as Musk, with his young son on his shoulders, breezed by and into the private meeting.
Trump tapped the two business titans to head his Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, a nongovernmental task force assigned to find ways to fire federal workers, cut programs and slash federal regulations — all part of what he calls his “Save America” agenda for a second term in the White House.
Washington has seen this before, with ambitious efforts to reduce the size and scope of the federal government that historically have run into resistance when the public is confronted with cuts to trusted programs that millions of Americans depend on for jobs, health care, military security and everyday needs.
But this time Trump is staffing his administration with battle-tested architects of sweeping proposals, some outlined in Project 2025, to severely reduce and reshape the government. Musk and Ramaswamy have said they plan to work alongside the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, headed by Trump’s nominee Russ Vought, a mastermind of past cuts.
“DOGE has a historic opportunity for structural reductions in the federal government,” Musk and Ramaswamy wrote in an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal. “We are prepared for the onslaught.”
Trump said Thursday that he would also name venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar” and lead the Presidential Council of Advisers for Science and Technology. Trump said in a social media post that Sacks would help “steer us away from Big Tech bias and censorship.” Trump’s transition team didn’t say whether Sacks would be a government employee or a temporary government worker who would not be bound by the same ethics and disclosure rules.
Sacks visited Mar-a-Lago earlier Thursday, according to an investor who held an event at Trump’s Florida club. The longtime conservative was key to introducing Vice President-elect JD Vance to donors, helping him prove he could raise money. Sacks hosted a fundraiser for Trump and Vance at his San Francisco home.
Musk and Ramaswamy faced a first test as they sat on a auditorium stage in the Capitol basement, as House and Senate lawmakers, almost exclusively Republicans, lined up at the microphones to share ideas for ways to address the nation’s budget imbalances.
Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., the chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, brought up the Department of Education as a good place to cut. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisconsin, said to look at office space and how little of it is being used. Others talked about the need for workers to return to their offices.
Afterward, Johnson declined to say if Medicare, Social Security or other popular programs were off limits for cuts, describing this first meeting as a “brainstorming” session with more to come.
“They said everything has to be looked at,” said Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., who joined with Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, in launching what they are calling the DOGE caucus in the House, with more than 50 Republicans and two Democratic members.
Musk and Ramaswamy appeared to be taking it all in, Musk at times even taking notes, lawmakers said — experiencing a day in the life of congressional leadership, as the meeting went on and on, with lawmakers lined up 20-deep for their chance to speak.
“It was just what I’d hoped for, where it was a question and answer session, so that members could come up, express their ideas, concerns, ask questions,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who will chair a House Oversight subcommittee in the new year on DOGE.
To be sure, it wasn’t the full Congress participating, as most Democrats did not join.
New York Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi said when he heard Musk mention that he was open to hearing from Democrats, he dashed over to join toward the end of the session.
“Let’s do some things to try and make government more efficient — without hurting people,” Suozzi said.
Musk and Ramaswamy left lawmakers with the impression they would be back for more, holding regular meetings and starting a podcast or some other way to share information with Americans to gauge public support — or opposition — to the proposals.
While neither Musk nor Ramaswamy have much public service experience, they bring track records in private business — Musk’s operations have vast government contracts — and enthusiasm for Trump’s agenda, having campaigned alongside him in the final stretch of the election.
The world’s richest man, Musk poured millions into a get-out-the-vote effort to help the former president return to the White House. He is known politically for having transformed the popular social media site formerly known as Twitter into X, a platform embraced by Trump’s “Make America Great Again” enthusiasts.
Despite its name, the Department of Government Efficiency is neither a department nor part of the government, which frees Musk and Ramaswamy from having to go through the typical ethics and background checks required for federal employment. They said they will not be paid for their work.
One good-government group has said that DOGE, as a presidential advisory panel, should be expected to adhere to traditional practices of transparency, equal representation and public input — as happened with similar advisory entities from the Reagan to the Obama administrations.
The Federal Advisory Committee Act “is designed expressly for situations like this,” wrote Lisa Gilbert and Robert Weissman, the co-chairs of Public Citizen, in a letter to the Trump transition team.
“If the government is going to turn to unelected and politically unaccountable persons to make recommendations as grand as $2 trillion in budget cuts, it must ensure those recommendations come from a balanced and transparent process not rigged to benefit insiders.”
The nation’s $6 trillion federal budget routinely runs a deficit, which this year ran $1.8 trillion, a historic high, according to the Congressional Budget Office. It has not been balanced since the Clinton administration more than two decades ago.
Republicans generally blame what they see as exorbitant spending for the deficit, while Democrats point to tax cuts enacted under Republican presidents Trump and George W. Bush as the major driver.
Receipts last year as a percentage of gross domestic product came in just below the average for the past 50 years, while outlays were equal to 23.4 percent of GDP, compared to the 50-year average of 21.1 percent.
Some of the biggest increases in spending last year occurred with politically popular programs that lawmakers will be reticent to touch. For example, spending on Social Security benefits went up 8 percent, Medicare outlays increased 9 percent, spending on defense went up 7 percent and spending on veterans health care rose 14 percent, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Louisiana, said the significance of the meeting was that it was even taking place, “that there’s honest dialogue between Congress and two, like, rock star administration guys.”
Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said he would like to see Musk testify before the House Armed Services Committee on the “bloated defense budget.”
“I’d like to see Elon recommend some cuts. Let’s have him testify,” Khanna said.


Venezuelan opposition chief urges parliamentary election boycott

Venezuelan opposition chief urges parliamentary election boycott
Updated 20 January 2025
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Venezuelan opposition chief urges parliamentary election boycott

Venezuelan opposition chief urges parliamentary election boycott

CARACAS: Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado called Sunday for a boycott of 2025 parliamentary elections after last year’s presidential vote widely considered to have been stolen by Nicolas Maduro.
Much of the international community disputes Maduro’s claim to victory in July 28 elections the opposition says it can prove were won by its candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia.
“Going to vote again and again without respecting the results is not defending the (right to) vote, it is distorting the popular will,” Machado, who is in hiding, said in a video published on social media.
Venezuela is set to go to the polls this year to elect members of parliament, governors and mayors. No date has been set.
This comes as the United States, European Union, G7 and several democratic neighbors have refused to recognize Maduro’s claim to have won re-election to a third six-year term in last year’s vote.
The 62-year-old was sworn in on January 10 even as Washington offered a $25 million reward for Maduro’s arrest and sanctions were increased.
The opposition says its tally of results from the July vote showed a clear victory for 75-year-old Gonzalez Urrutia, who went into exile in Spain in September after a crackdown on dissent.
In 2020, the opposition boycotted parliamentary elections, having won a majority in the legislature five years earlier.
Maduro’s allies regained control of parliament and passed increasingly oppressive laws since then, according to rights groups.
The opposition had also boycotted 2018 presidential elections in which Maduro claimed re-election to a second term that was also rejected by most of the international community.


Biden urges Americans to ‘keep the faith’ as he spends final full day as president in South Carolina

Biden urges Americans to ‘keep the faith’ as he spends final full day as president in South Carolina
Updated 20 January 2025
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Biden urges Americans to ‘keep the faith’ as he spends final full day as president in South Carolina

Biden urges Americans to ‘keep the faith’ as he spends final full day as president in South Carolina
  • “We know the struggle to redeeming the soul of this nation is difficult and ongoing,” Biden said. “We must hold on to hope. We must stay engaged. We must always keep the faith in the better day to come”

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C.: Joe Biden spent his final full day as president Sunday in South Carolina, urging Americans to “keep the faith in a better day to come” and reflecting on the impact of the civil rights movement in pushing him into politics.
On the eve of Monday’s inauguration of Republican President-elect Donald Trump, Biden delivered a final farewell from a state that holds special meaning after his commanding win in its 2020 Democratic primary set him up to achieve his life’s goal of being elected president of the United States.
Biden spoke to the congregation of Royal Missionary Baptist Church about why he entered public service — Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were political heroes, he said — and he thanked South Carolina for its support: “I owe you big.” Monday is the federal holiday honoring King, the slain civil rights leader.
“We know the struggle to redeeming the soul of this nation is difficult and ongoing,” Biden said. “We must hold on to hope. We must stay engaged. We must always keep the faith in the better day to come.”
He added: “I’m not going anywhere” — and the congregation applauded.
Before the service, as hostages started to be released under a Middle East ceasefire that the US helped broker, Biden said “the guns in Gaza have gone silent.” The agreement to halt the fighting between Israel and Hamas was one he had outlined in May.
“Now it falls on the next administration to help implement this deal. I was pleased to have our team speak as one voice in the final days,” Biden said.
He noted that the three hostages released Sunday “appear to be in good health” and he offered some advice to Trump on maintaining the hard-won deal.
“Success is going to require persistence, and continuing support for our friends in the region and the belief in diplomacy backed by deterrence,” Biden said.
After Biden spoke on the ceasefire, he and first lady Jill Biden took their seats in the front pew at the church. At least several hundred congregants sang gospel songs, rising to their feet and swaying and clapping. A choir led the musical selections from behind the pulpit before the program later shifted to focus on King.
Biden was introduced by Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., a key ally who referred to the president as his “longtime friend.” Clyburn cited a number of presidents who were underappreciated during their time in office but are now looked on more fondly with the passage of time. He added Biden to that list.
“So I want to say to you, good friend, very little appreciation has been shown recently but faint not. History will be very proud of you,” Clyburn said.
The Bidens also will tour the International African American Museum in South Carolina. It was built on a waterfront site where tens of thousands of enslaved Africans were brought to the US from the late 1760s through 1808, according to the museum’s website.
Back in 2020, Biden saw his campaign flounder after he lost the opening contests in New Hampshire, Iowa and Nevada. But at the fourth stop, South Carolina — where Black voters make up a majority of the Democratic electorate — he was lifted to victory after Clyburn’s endorsement.
“I know Joe. We know Joe. But most importantly, Joe knows us,” Clyburn said at the time.
After winning election and taking office, Biden pushed for South Carolina to move to the head of the line and be the state that opened the Democratic Party’s nominating process for 2024, instead of New Hampshire. He easily won the state’s primary that year.
“In 2020, it was the voters of South Carolina who proved the pundits wrong, breathed new life into our campaign, and set us on the path to winning the presidency,” Biden said in a statement after winning the primary for the second time. “Now in 2024, the people of South Carolina have spoken again and I have no doubt that you have set us on the path to winning the Presidency again — and making Donald Trump a loser — again.”
It didn’t turn out that way. After faltering in a debate against Trump, Biden dropped out of the race under pressure from many Democrats, though Clyburn notably was not among them.
Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, who replaced him as the Democrats’ nominee. She lost to Trump.
Clyburn said Biden told him he wanted to visit the African American history museum, which Clyburn helped start. They were planning to spend some time together there.
“This is his way of saying ‘thank you,’” Clyburn said.


Trump draws thousands to Washington rally for a pre-inauguration victory lap

Trump draws thousands to Washington rally for a pre-inauguration victory lap
Updated 20 January 2025
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Trump draws thousands to Washington rally for a pre-inauguration victory lap

Trump draws thousands to Washington rally for a pre-inauguration victory lap
  • Trump’s rally, along with his inaugural address on Monday, could preview the tone he plans to adopt during his second White House term
  • Elon Musk and JD Vance due to speak before Trump addresses crowd

WASHINGTON: Thousands of Donald Trump’s supporters packed a Washington arena on Sunday to celebrate his victory, a day before the president-elect returns to power with plans to aggressively reshape US immigration and trade policy.
Throngs of fans danced to musician Kid Rock’s performance as they awaited Trump’s arrival at a “Make America Great Again Victory Rally” at Capital One Arena, an indoor hockey and basketball arena and the venue for some of Monday’s inauguration festivities after forecasts of bitter cold prompted officials to cancel the planned outdoor festivities.
The rally was likely to resemble the free-wheeling speeches that have been a Trump staple since his first White House campaign in 2016. The event marked his first major address in Washington since he delivered a speech on Jan. 6, 2021, to his supporters that preceded the storming of the US Capitol.
Stephen Miller, a top Trump adviser, told the audience that Trump would issue an executive order on Monday “ending the border invasion, sending the illegals home and taking America back,” drawing cheers.
Ahead of the rally, his fans, many dressed in Trump’s trademark red jackets and MAGA hats, waited in a cold, driving rain along several downtown Washington blocks, some chanting “USA! USA!“
Val Tordjman, 58, had traveled across the country from Denver with tickets to watch the inauguration. When he heard the ceremony was being moved inside, notably cutting the size of the in-person audience, he said, “I felt like crying.”
Tordjman said he planned to spend the night on the street next to the arena, despite temperatures forecast to plunge to around 19 degrees Fahrenheit (-7 degrees Celsius). He said he had yet to see Trump in person.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” he said.
Large swaths of the streets around the US Capitol and White House have been blocked off by steel fences since last week, and police were visible throughout the city.
Trump’s rally, along with his inaugural address on Monday, could preview the tone he plans to adopt during his second White House term. In recent weeks, Trump has bewildered foreign allies by musing aloud about taking over Greenland and the Panama Canal and turning Canada into a US state.
Immigration will be a target of Trump’s first executive actions after taking office, along with energy issues and policies aimed at promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, his incoming national security adviser Mike Waltz told CBS.
“The American people gave him a clear mandate. Lock down our border, deport the worst of the worst, take on the cartels,” Waltz said in an interview with “Face the Nation.”
Trump had breakfast with Republican US senators at Blair House, the guest quarters across from the White House, on Sunday. John Cornyn, Susan Collins, Ted Cruz, Rick Scott and Tim Scott were among the attendees seen leaving the event.
He later placed a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington. Trump saluted the tomb as a military bugler played “Taps.”

MUSK FACTOR
The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, who has become a Trump confidant since spending more than $250 million on his campaign, is scheduled to speak at the event, along with Vice President-elect JD Vance, Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, conservative activist Charlie Kirk and conservative commentator Megyn Kelly.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew planned to attend the rally, hours after the company announced it was restoring its service thanks to Trump’s promise to delay a US ban that took effect on Sunday. Chew is also expected to join other tech executives at Trump’s inauguration on Monday.
Biden, meanwhile, made his last official trip as president on Sunday to Charleston, South Carolina, to mark Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which is also on Monday. He attended services and spoke about King’s legacy at Royal Missionary Baptist Church, while also urging despondent fellow Democrats not to give up hope.
The inauguration is scheduled for noon ET (1700 GMT) on Monday, when Trump will take the presidential oath of office inside the rotunda of the Capitol building, after the cold weather prompted organizers to move the ceremony indoors. Approximately 25,000 law enforcement personnel will be on hand to provide security.


Swiss police clear hundreds of anti-Davos protesters

Swiss police clear hundreds of anti-Davos protesters
Updated 20 January 2025
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Swiss police clear hundreds of anti-Davos protesters

Swiss police clear hundreds of anti-Davos protesters
  • Many observers have expressed concern about the so-called “broligarchy” surrounding US President-elect Donald Trump, which includes billionaire Elon Musk

DAVOS, Switzerland: Some 300 people including two millionaires protested in Davos Sunday ahead of next week’s gathering of the global elite at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in the Swiss Alps.
Demonstrators carried placards with slogans such as “Tax the rich,” “Shut up! Pay taxes” and “Smash colonial capitalism,” blocking the road to the glitzy mountain resort.
Police moved in after the demonstrators ignored two calls for them to leave, a spokeswoman for the Graubunden cantonal police told the Keystone-ATS news agency.
With the blockade causing a major traffic jam, the authorities deployed a specialized vehicle to clear the highway ahead of the WEF’s Monday start.
Among those attending the protest was Austrian-German heiress Marlene Engelhorn, who gave away the bulk of her multi-million-euro inheritance to dozens of organizations working on social issues.
“The WEF symbolizes how much power wealthy people like me hold,” she told AFPTV.
“Because just because we are born millionaires, or because we got lucky once — and call that self-made — we now get to influence politicians worldwide with our political preferences,” she added.
“It’s a huge lobbyism effort. It’s a huge lack of transparency that we witness here, no accountability... I just think we need accountability, we need transparency, we need democracy to be in place here.”
Engelhorn also denounced the pollution being caused by private jets flying in for the summit.
Also at Sunday’s protest was Britain’s Phil White, part of a group called Patriotic Millionaires.
Many observers have expressed concern about the so-called “broligarchy” surrounding US President-elect Donald Trump, which includes billionaire Elon Musk.
Founded in 1971, the WEF offers a yearly opportunity for hundreds of business executives, politicians and other leading figures to mingle in the ski resort-turned-conference center over the course of a week.
More than 60 heads of state and government will be among those attending this year, according to the WEF.
Top of their minds will be Trump’s imminent return to the White House.
Trump is due to address the forum by videolink on January 23, according to the organizers, just three days after his inauguration Monday for a second term in office.


Heavy snow and frigid Arctic blast put 70 million across the US under winter storm warnings

Heavy snow and frigid Arctic blast put 70 million across the US under winter storm warnings
Updated 20 January 2025
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Heavy snow and frigid Arctic blast put 70 million across the US under winter storm warnings

Heavy snow and frigid Arctic blast put 70 million across the US under winter storm warnings
  • The colder temperatures will reach down into the South early this week, where as many as 30 million people starting Monday could see a wintry mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain

BOSTON: Tens of millions of residents along the East Coast are bracing for several inches of snow Sunday followed by dangerously cold temperatures that will take hold in much of the country from the Northern Plains to the tip of Maine.
Winter storm warnings issued by the National Weather Service have already gone into effect for parts of the Mid-Atlantic through Monday morning, with the forecast projecting up to a half-foot (15 centimeters) of snow. Warnings will begin in New England on Sunday afternoon, with parts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Connecticut seeing as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) of snow.
Marc Chenard, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in College Park Maryland, projected that as many as 70 million residents will be under some kind of winter storm hazards warning in the coming days including in New England and the Mid-Atlantic. Large cities like Philadelphia, New York and Boston could see several inches of snow this evening with the highest totals being outside of major cities.
“There will certainly be some more hazardous road conditions anywhere from D.C. up the whole I-95 corridor and then inland from there later today and tonight,” Chenard said. “Then it gets quite cold behind that. By Monday morning, any roads that haven’t been treated or cleared will still likely be some hazardous travel conditions.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams urged city residents to take the subway and buses if they have to travel during the storm, to make it easier for crews to clear the streets. He said people who need help with heating or frozen pipes can call 311, and he asked residents to check on their neighbors during the frigid weather.
“Cold temperatures, high winds tomorrow, could be dangerous,” Adams told reporters on Saturday afternoon. “We have to be here for each other and make sure our pets and other parts of New York are safe as we navigate through this cold weather condition we expect.”
The weather service said there was a chance of snow showers Sunday afternoon and evening in western New York state, where the Buffalo Bills are set to host the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL playoff game starting at 6:30 p.m.. Heavier, lake-effect snow was expected in that part of the state Monday through Wednesday morning, with 2 feet to 3 feet (about 60 to 90 centimeters) possible in some areas including Oswego along Lake Ontario.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy declared a state emergency for all 21 counties in the Garden State. A winter storm warning was in effect for 10 counties in the northern part of the state, where 6 to 8 inches of snow is expected to fall from Sunday afternoon through the late evening.
Cities and towns were opening warming centers for the next several days to protect people from the freezing temperatures.
Return of the Arctic blast
But the snow is just the start of a chaotic week of weather.
Much of the Eastern half of the United States will be enduring some of the coldest temperatures this winter, if not for several years.
An area from the Rockies into the Northern Plains will see colder than normal temperatures starting Sunday into the coming week, with temperatures dropping to minus 30 degrees F (minus 34 degrees C) to minus 55 F (minus 48 C) on Sunday and Monday. Wind chills of minus 40 F (minus 40 C) were already being clocked in parts of North Dakota and Minnesota. Sub-zero wind chills are forecast to reach as far south as Oklahoma and the Tennessee Valley.
The cold weather forecasted for Monday for Washington, D.C., prompted President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural ceremony to be moved inside the US Capitol Rotunda.
“It’s going to be a cold day in Washington, D.C. on Monday. That’s for sure,” Chenard said, noting temperatures will be in the 20s with wind gust upwards of 30 mph (48 kph).
As happened earlier this month, this latest cold snap comes from a disruption in the polar vortex, the ring of cold air usually trapped about the North Pole.
The cold air will moderate as it moves southward and eastward, but the Central and Eastern US will still be cold with highs in the teens and 20s on Monday into Tuesday, Chenard said. The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast also will have highs in the teens and 20s, lows in the single digits and below zero degrees F (minus 18 C) and wind chills below zero.
Unusual wintry mix
The colder temperatures will reach down into the South early this week, where as many as 30 million people starting Monday could see a wintry mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain. The unusual conditions are expected to stretch from Texas into northern Florida and the Carolinas. Impacts are expected to start in Texas on Monday night and spread across the Gulf Coast and Southeast on Tuesday into Wednesday.
A combination of frigid air with a low pressure system over the Gulf are behind the storm, which could bring heavy snow just south of the Interstate 20 corridor across northern Louisiana and into Mississippi and a mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain near the Interstate 10 corridor from Houston to Mobile, Alabama.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry on Saturday issued a state of emergency in advance of the wintry weather. He encouraged Louisianans to be prepared and to monitor the weather forecast.