Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s plan for FIRE on a national level

[Herbert Derp]

And calling the thing DOGE is just the perfect mockery - but there is a nonzero chance that Musk isn't getting it...

Elon was the one who wanted to call it DOGE in the first place. It’s his own joke 😂

We have all known that the rich influence politicians and outcomes, but the fact that this is overt and out there is proof that it things really need to change.  It is completely unacceptable

I think it’s hilarious 😂😂😂

DOGE. Much government. Such efficiency. Wow.

[Herbert Derp]

But I digress, I’m sorry that some of you guys don’t have a sense of humor. It’s ok to be deadly serious about something and also crack jokes about it. Being able to poke fun at the situation and blow off some steam is important, especially when one is engaged in serious and arduous undertakings.

Just look at Richard Feynman. The guy was constantly cracking jokes and pranking people. Everyone knew he was one of the most hard working and brilliant physicists in the world. A fundamentally serious individual. But that man knew how to blow off some steam! Otherwise the stress of his undertakings would have gotten to him.

Jon Stewart is another example. I think most of us can agree that the man is a fundamentally serious political activist. He really does believe in something, and stand for something. He works very hard to further his cause. But man, does he also have a sense of humor!

[bacchi]

Oh, I'm chuckling...at all the people that think tariffs aren't going to cause inflation.

[Telecaster]

DOGE. Much government. Such efficiency. Wow.

DOGE is so inefficient it takes two guys to run it!

I'm certain they want cut costs.  That part is easy.  I could cut the Defense budget by 1/3.  Just get rid of the Navy.   Oh, you want to keep the Navy?  That means you have to really drill down and find areas of improvement.  That part is hard and it requires careful examination of the system and buy in from key players.  Trump's nominee for Defense Secretary who is a defense procurement and operations expert...oh wait.  He's a Fox New host. 

I've done a lot of government contracting over the years.   I'll go on record as saying a lot of government inefficiency is caused by bureaucratic inertia (that's also true in the private sector too).   but most of the inefficiency is caused by regulations designed to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse.  Part of that is justified because the government needs to be open and transparent in a way the private sector doesn't.   But part of it is caused by bureaucrats creating needless rules to  prevent waste, fraud, and abuse.

[tooqk4u22]

Matt Gaetz lol

Idiocracy is here.

I can see a clever tactic here.  The House will be an even narrower margin.  If they want to conduct any business, they have to ditch the troublemakers who might tank the Speaker again.  So, send them off to a corner nobody cares about (DOJ!) and let them make a mess while the big kids pass tax cuts.

Next: Lauren Boebert for HHS!  MTG for Nasa!

Ugh....I love our country but this is one of those things that makes you think about other countries.

This is 100% a test of fealty.....put forth an option that is unquestionably one that is wrong and expect, no demand, support.....that is the truest tests of unbridled loyalty. 

I don't get it, with the election victory congress shouldn't be fearful of Trump retribution as he can't run again (unless Gaetz or similar), congess actually should now be emboldened to stand their ground!   Will they?  I think not!  Mostly because congress is corrupt and wants their pay day too!

[Kris]

Matt Gaetz lol

Idiocracy is here.

I can see a clever tactic here.  The House will be an even narrower margin.  If they want to conduct any business, they have to ditch the troublemakers who might tank the Speaker again.  So, send them off to a corner nobody cares about (DOJ!) and let them make a mess while the big kids pass tax cuts.

Next: Lauren Boebert for HHS!  MTG for Nasa!

Ugh....I love our country but this is one of those things that makes you think about other countries.

This is 100% a test of fealty.....put forth an option that is unquestionably one that is wrong and expect, no demand, support.....that is the truest tests of unbridled loyalty. 

I don't get it, with the election victory congress shouldn't be fearful of Trump retribution as he can't run again (unless Gaetz or similar), congess actually should now be emboldened to stand their ground!   Will they?  I think not!  Mostly because congress is corrupt and wants their pay day too!

Thinking of “Congress” as a monolith is letting the individuals off the hook. This is absolutely on the Republicans that continue to support this.

[tooqk4u22]

Matt Gaetz lol

Idiocracy is here.

I can see a clever tactic here.  The House will be an even narrower margin.  If they want to conduct any business, they have to ditch the troublemakers who might tank the Speaker again.  So, send them off to a corner nobody cares about (DOJ!) and let them make a mess while the big kids pass tax cuts.

Next: Lauren Boebert for HHS!  MTG for Nasa!

Ugh....I love our country but this is one of those things that makes you think about other countries.

This is 100% a test of fealty.....put forth an option that is unquestionably one that is wrong and expect, no demand, support.....that is the truest tests of unbridled loyalty. 

I don't get it, with the election victory congress shouldn't be fearful of Trump retribution as he can't run again (unless Gaetz or similar), congess actually should now be emboldened to stand their ground!   Will they?  I think not!  Mostly because congress is corrupt and wants their pay day too!

Thinking of “Congress” as a monolith is letting the individuals off the hook. This is absolutely on the Republicans that continue to support this.

Unfortunately, congress for some time, has acted as a monolith, well I guess two monoliths (i know) on a partisan basis.  It's not letting individuals off the hook, but yeah as eluded too in my comment Republican reps/senators have cowarded to the trump hammer.....but I say no more!  He can't claim another term or anything for that matter if you don't let him.....he can't run.....Republicans, I urge you to find your spine and stand up for the country and yourselves!  Checks and balances!

As for its all republicans.....that is not true. Democrats whether they like it or not or even (won't) admit it, insider democrats not saying no to Biden when he decided to run for reelection (remember that he was supposed to be a one term "transitional" president), and if that wasn't bad enough at some point after that his acuity deteriorated and insiders hid it until they couldn't.....shame on democrats for not spending the last four years developing a bench and relatable message all while effectively running a shadow government in the process. 

Both parties are complicit and each is racing to one up the other to the bottom. Everybody knows what trump is and that's the problem.....democrat finger pointing judgemental elites made the club way to exclusive and off-putting to the populous, and moved far far too left....democrats are supposed to be about the populous and working people. And yet that is why they lost!  Dems have lost their way!

And @Kris until dems stop pointing fingers at Trump and company as to how awful they are (they are!) vs looking inward to understand what they got wrong and need to get better at then dems are screwed! And best I can tell from all the post-mortems to date is that the vast majority of dems still don't get it.

[Kris]

Matt Gaetz lol

Idiocracy is here.

I can see a clever tactic here.  The House will be an even narrower margin.  If they want to conduct any business, they have to ditch the troublemakers who might tank the Speaker again.  So, send them off to a corner nobody cares about (DOJ!) and let them make a mess while the big kids pass tax cuts.

Next: Lauren Boebert for HHS!  MTG for Nasa!

Ugh....I love our country but this is one of those things that makes you think about other countries.

This is 100% a test of fealty.....put forth an option that is unquestionably one that is wrong and expect, no demand, support.....that is the truest tests of unbridled loyalty. 

I don't get it, with the election victory congress shouldn't be fearful of Trump retribution as he can't run again (unless Gaetz or similar), congess actually should now be emboldened to stand their ground!   Will they?  I think not!  Mostly because congress is corrupt and wants their pay day too!

Thinking of “Congress” as a monolith is letting the individuals off the hook. This is absolutely on the Republicans that continue to support this.

Unfortunately, congress for some time, has acted as a monolith, well I guess two monoliths (i know) on a partisan basis.  It's not letting individuals off the hook, but yeah as eluded too in my comment Republican reps/senators have cowarded to the trump hammer.....but I say no more!  He can't claim another term or anything for that matter if you don't let him.....he can't run.....Republicans, I urge you to find your spine and stand up for the country and yourselves!  Checks and balances!

As for its all republicans.....that is not true. Democrats whether they like it or not or even (won't) admit it, insider democrats not saying no to Biden when he decided to run for reelection (remember that he was supposed to be a one term "transitional" president), and if that wasn't bad enough at some point after that his acuity deteriorated and insiders hid it until they couldn't.....shame on democrats for not spending the last four years developing a bench and relatable message all while effectively running a shadow government in the process. 

Both parties are complicit and each is racing to one up the other to the bottom. Everybody knows what trump is and that's the problem.....democrat finger pointing judgemental elites made the club way to exclusive and off-putting to the populous, and moved far far too left....democrats are supposed to be about the populous and working people. And yet that is why they lost!  Dems have lost their way!

And @Kris until dems stop pointing fingers at Trump and company as to how awful they are (they are!) vs looking inward to understand what they got wrong and need to get better at then dems are screwed! And best I can tell from all the post-mortems to date is that the vast majority of dems still don't get it.

So, since you raise this… what, concretely, do you think the Dems need to do?

[tooqk4u22]

@Kris - I think they need to moderate and stop trying to tell everyone what to do and think because they are better. Sure inflation was a hit...but when most coastal dems are like "Ruth Chris steakhouse is pretty reasonable" while everyone else is like "I can't afford groceries!" there is a disconnect.

I mean, c'mon, they lost the south, they lost the unions, they lost every swing state, lost senate, and likely lost the house!

Do you think a Clinton type (Midwestener or southerner) notwithstanding all his faults would have a chance with the current democratic regime. 

Biden and the democratic machine is to blame.  Harris, while I am not sure she would have made it through a primary if given a chance, was dealt a really really bad hand....and even then it's not like it was a landslide....red wave and sweep, sure, but not a landslide.....which tells you with better messaginging, policies, time, and/or candidate dems would have won.  But they didn't. 

And yes, the third rail of "woke" is a problem! Stop trying to bend the needs of will of the many to accommodate the very few.......and i mean accommodate not discriminate. All people should be defended and protected as required by law and should be even if not required by law, but there is a difference and most people don't like being told and told and told....sometimes slow playing, discussion and time do wonders without compromising your views. Urban cities, mostly liberal, have been decimated by anti-police and anti-prosecution policies.   It's not a good look for people that and vote in these cities.

So while you blame the Republicans, I blame the democrats for the shit show we are in!  It's like being a really fit and fast runner knowing they are racing a against a slow slob in the morning and thing it is no contest, so they go out an dfet hammered all night and go straight to the race from the bar and are surprised that they lose the race!

IDK....I wish the Republicans and Democrats would table the 3rd rail (20% of issues that they will never agree on) and focus on governing to the other 80% of issues.

I am not happy!  All I really wanted was divided government!  No additional spending, no tax cuts, just status quo or compromise......or in hindsight of the outcome a guardrail!

Ugh

[Kris]

@Kris - I think they need to moderate and stop trying to tell everyone what to do and think because they are better. Sure inflation was a hit...but when most coastal dems are like "Ruth Chris steakhouse is pretty reasonable" while everyone else is like "I can't afford groceries!" there is a disconnect.

I mean, c'mon, they lost the south, they lost the unions, they lost every swing state, lost senate, and likely lost the house!

Do you think a Clinton type (Midwestener or southerner) notwithstanding all his faults would have a chance with the current democratic regime. 

Biden and the democratic machine is to blame.  Harris, while I am not sure she would have made it through a primary if given a chance, was dealt a really really bad hand....and even then it's not like it was a landslide....red wave and sweep, sure, but not a landslide.....which tells you with better messaginging, policies, time, and/or candidate dems would have won.  But they didn't. 

And yes, the third rail of "woke" is a problem! Stop trying to bend the needs of will of the many to accommodate the very few.......and i mean accommodate not discriminate. All people should be defended and protected as required by law and should be even if not required by law, but there is a difference and most people don't like being told and told and told....sometimes slow playing, discussion and time do wonders without compromising your views. Urban cities, mostly liberal, have been decimated by anti-police and anti-prosecution policies.   It's not a good look for people that and vote in these cities.

IDK....I wish the Republicans and Democrats would table the 3rd rail (20% of issues that they will never agree on) and focus on governing to the other 80% of issues.

Okay. But concretely. Can you tell me what the Democratic platform should be? Because what I am seeing in your response is only what they should *not* be.

Write the winning platform. Because it seems like you have strong feelings about what that should be.

[tooqk4u22]

@Kris - the winning platform is inclusion, acceptance, support and understanding,  but not in the way the party has operated......it should also include working class and men and minorities. The winning platform is to stop what they have been doing for the last 20 years, and really exponentially over the last ten years.

I live on a fairly affluent area, where many would fall under the coastal elite moniker, and so many times I am dumbfounded by the hypocrisy and racism of these people.  Like seeing a dance squad at a school tour and hearing "Nope, my kids won't be going here!"  They all send their kids to private school....where diversity is non-existant - these are people with Black Lives Matte signs in their yard!  And that's the problem,  coastal elite dems are as racist and discriminatory as the trumpers, but they put on a public face that says otherwise (frauds). 

I probably didn't answer your question (and really i dont have the answers) but dems can keep doing what they are doing and lose, or reflect and adapt.  Sadly, I find myself asking the same question as in 2016.....if Trump is such horrible person and risk to democracy (which i believe him to be) then how bad was the other candidate?  Ugh.

[Scandium]

@Kris - the winning platform is inclusion, acceptance, support and understanding,  but not in the way the party has operated......it should also include working class and men and minorities. The winning platform is to stop what they have been doing for the last 20 years, and really exponentially over the last ten years.

I live on a fairly affluent area, where many would fall under the coastal elite moniker, and so many times I am dumbfounded by the hypocrisy and racism of these people.  Like seeing a dance squad at a school tour and hearing "Nope, my kids won't be going here!"  They all send their kids to private school....where diversity is non-existant - these are people with Black Lives Matte signs in their yard!  And that's the problem,  coastal elite dems are as racist and discriminatory as the trumpers, but they put on a public face that says otherwise (frauds). 

I probably didn't answer your question (and really i dont have the answers) but dems can keep doing what they are doing and lose, or reflect and adapt.  Sadly, I find myself asking the same question as in 2016.....if Trump is such horrible person and risk to democracy (which i believe him to be) then how bad was the other candidate?  Ugh.

Standard vibes bs. Because you know a handful of "libs" that send their kids to private school, because you heard/assumed(?) it's because there are black kids at the public school? So therefore the whole national party, that ran a black-Indian woman on a an economic platform to help middle and lower class, are "elites", and "talk down to" others? Can you give an example of actual Democratic party ads, statements or policies that do this? Or is it just "feelings" and right-wing talking points? Because that's what Tucker et al always say "THEY hate you"... even though the specifics of who "they" are, or how they hate you, is poorly explained at best.

So tired of this bullshit, where dems have to defend stuff they never said, and cater to butthurt ignorant rural people who "have heard" that libs are elitist and look down on them, because reasons.. That someone choose to drink soy late is somehow "judging them". When maybe it's just someone like fucking soy late, and don't think about republican voters at all when drinking it!
Republicans show nothing but contempt for 95% of the population, but somehow this never comes up for them! And democrats hear nothing other than that!

[dandarc]

@Kris - the winning platform is inclusion, acceptance, support and understanding,  but not in the way the party has operated......it should also include working class and men and minorities. The winning platform is to stop what they have been doing for the last 20 years, and really exponentially over the last ten years.

I live on a fairly affluent area, where many would fall under the coastal elite moniker, and so many times I am dumbfounded by the hypocrisy and racism of these people.  Like seeing a dance squad at a school tour and hearing "Nope, my kids won't be going here!"  They all send their kids to private school....where diversity is non-existant - these are people with Black Lives Matte signs in their yard!  And that's the problem,  coastal elite dems are as racist and discriminatory as the trumpers, but they put on a public face that says otherwise (frauds). 

I probably didn't answer your question (and really i dont have the answers) but dems can keep doing what they are doing and lose, or reflect and adapt.  Sadly, I find myself asking the same question as in 2016.....if Trump is such horrible person and risk to democracy (which i believe him to be) then how bad was the other candidate?  Ugh.

Standard vibes bs. Because you know a handful of "libs" that send their kids to private school, because you heard/assumed(?) it's because there are black kids at the public school? So therefore the whole national party, that ran a black-Indian woman on a an economic platform to help middle and lower class, are "elites", and "talk down to" others? Can you give an example of actual Democratic party ads, statements or policies that do this? Or is it just "feelings" and right-wing talking points? Because that's what Tucker et al always say "THEY hate you"... even though the specifics of who "they" are, or how they hate you, is poorly explained at best.

So tired of this bullshit, where dems have to defend stuff they never said, and cater to butthurt ignorant rural people who "have heard" that libs are elitist and look down on them, because reasons.. Republicans show nothing but contempt for 95% of the population, but somehow this never comes up for them! And democrats hear nothing other than that!

Preach!

[tooqk4u22]

@Kris - the winning platform is inclusion, acceptance, support and understanding,  but not in the way the party has operated......it should also include working class and men and minorities. The winning platform is to stop what they have been doing for the last 20 years, and really exponentially over the last ten years.

I live on a fairly affluent area, where many would fall under the coastal elite moniker, and so many times I am dumbfounded by the hypocrisy and racism of these people.  Like seeing a dance squad at a school tour and hearing "Nope, my kids won't be going here!"  They all send their kids to private school....where diversity is non-existant - these are people with Black Lives Matte signs in their yard!  And that's the problem,  coastal elite dems are as racist and discriminatory as the trumpers, but they put on a public face that says otherwise (frauds). 

I probably didn't answer your question (and really i dont have the answers) but dems can keep doing what they are doing and lose, or reflect and adapt.  Sadly, I find myself asking the same question as in 2016.....if Trump is such horrible person and risk to democracy (which i believe him to be) then how bad was the other candidate?  Ugh.

Standard vibes bs. Because you know a handful of "libs" that send their kids to private school, because you heard/assumed(?) it's because there are black kids at the public school? So therefore the whole national party, that ran a black-Indian woman on a an economic platform to help middle and lower class, are "elites", and "talk down to" others? Can you give an example of actual Democratic party ads, statements or policies that do this? Or is it just "feelings" and right-wing talking points? Because that's what Tucker et al always say "THEY hate you"... even though the specifics of who "they" are, or how they hate you, is poorly explained at best.

So tired of this bullshit, where dems have to defend stuff they never said, and cater to butthurt ignorant rural people who "have heard" that libs are elitist and look down on them, because reasons.. Republicans show nothing but contempt for 95% of the population, but somehow this never comes up for them! And democrats hear nothing other than that!

OK....

I live in an area/state that is highly democratic with large proportion of high income households and work with a similar cohort (clients, coworkers, managers, etc).....so it is more than a handful.   Its very much a nimby mentality.....ya know, "hey we need more affordable housing...oh wait, but it shouldn't be in my township." I didn't say anything about hate but this cohort does like its segregation from lower income people.

My example, while anecdotal, was a representation of that....it was tour of a public middle school (there are two to choose from) one is more diverse than the other. At that tour, at least 10 families that i heard immediately said nope - of the 10 half sent their kids to private and the other half sent to the other middle school that is less diverse and on the right side.  In the last year or so, the choice has gone away and our specific neighborhood as been lined to the "right" school and most in the neighborhood speak openly about being so glad that their kids won't have to go to the "wrong" school.  My kids all went to the "wrong" school and did well and have a diverse group of friends. Just anecdotal.

I don't know what Tucker says, never watched or listened and never will.  And whatever, if you want to be like the dems and continue to espouse that Trump is bad and a mistake (again, he is) instead of looking inward to what the party got wrong or who really is their base then so be it.  I think change is needed.

Some (just a few) dems are finally starting to break stride and speak out about what went wrong and need to evolve.

I wish I was a Trumper as I would be really happy right now......I am not happy right now!  Midterms here we come....that's the hope anyway. 

[GuitarStv]

My example, while anecdotal, was a representation of that....it was tour of a public middle school (there are two to choose from) one is more diverse than the other. At that tour, at least 10 families that i heard immediately said nope - of the 10 half sent their kids to private and the other half sent to the other middle school that is less diverse and on the right side.  In the last year or so, the choice has gone away and our specific neighborhood as been lined to the "right" school and most in the neighborhood speak openly about being so glad that their kids won't have to go to the "wrong" school.  My kids all went to the "wrong" school and did well and have a diverse group of friends. Just anecdotal.

Your observation sounds reasonable/believable, but I wonder if you're drawing the correct conclusion from it.

When parents are choosing between two schools, there's a tendency to look at school performance ratings and heavily (often in my opinion overly) weighting their choice based on this.  For a whole variety of reasons (ranging from average income of attending families, prevalence of secondary schooling of parents, speaking a secondary language as primary, etc) it's very common for schools with higher percentages of minorities to test lower.  It seems reasonable to conclude that many parents are going to want their kid to go to the higher testing school and the decision has little to do with race.

FWIW, I believe that there's a value in going to a diverse school.  85% of the students in the school my son is currently going to are visible minorities.  The lower test scores concerned me quite a bit when we were figuring out which school to send him to.

[reeshau]

Trump yesterday, speaking to Republican lawmakers:

“Elon won’t go home. I can’t get rid of him,” Trump said Wednesday. “Until I don’t like him.”

It will be interesting to see where X and Elon's political contributions go, when they have a falling out.

[Tempname23]

What we have here is a basic lack of understanding of how tariffs work.

May I suggest a basic economics course. Or, ask Brazil how that worked out for them. Or even the US, in the colonial days. Or a public policy course.

  Yes, tariffs are not a panacea, But they can help increase American jobs, could help defund the Chinese military and economy, and it is also a good lever in negotiations.  But, it is a delicate balancing act of using it to advantage without to much harm to our economy.

[Scandium]

What we have here is a basic lack of understanding of how tariffs work.

May I suggest a basic economics course. Or, ask Brazil how that worked out for them. Or even the US, in the colonial days. Or a public policy course.

  Yes, tariffs are not a panacea, But they can help increase American jobs, could help defund the Chinese military and economy, and it is also a good lever in negotiations.  But, it is a delicate balancing act of using it to advantage without to much harm to our economy.

"could" is doing a lot of work in this sentence

[Just Joe]

I live in an area/state that is highly democratic with large proportion of high income households and work with a similar cohort (clients, coworkers, managers, etc).....so it is more than a handful.   Its very much a nimby mentality.....ya know, "hey we need more affordable housing...oh wait, but it shouldn't be in my township." I didn't say anything about hate but this cohort does like its segregation from lower income people.

My example, while anecdotal, was a representation of that....it was tour of a public middle school (there are two to choose from) one is more diverse than the other. At that tour, at least 10 families that i heard immediately said nope - of the 10 half sent their kids to private and the other half sent to the other middle school that is less diverse and on the right side.  In the last year or so, the choice has gone away and our specific neighborhood as been lined to the "right" school and most in the neighborhood speak openly about being so glad that their kids won't have to go to the "wrong" school.  My kids all went to the "wrong" school and did well and have a diverse group of friends. Just anecdotal.

Is this a Dems problem or is this a human problem?

I suggest this because I'm from a very red state and from a place similar to what you've described. Very white, very well to do, and very Trumpy. They have their own neighborhood/town schools and the people there speak about the very same topics you described. They are very pleased that due to they way the city/county/natural boundaries they are separated from the less wealthy, less white neighborhoods. Each time the county tries to bus kids from other schools to increase the diversity in the well to do, white schools I grew up attending, there are white people there who react badly. There isn't the overt kind of pushback as seen in the history books i.e. the KKK or cross burnings but people beat around the bush and make their points about their dissatisfaction. 

Not everyone there is like that but they narrow minded ones are influential and nurmerous enough to shape the community.

[EscapeVelocity2020]

Now that I've had a week to begin to processing Trump returning to the White House, as well as his chaotic cabinet picks that are coming thick and fast, I can't help but look at this thread as a great example of the impressive delusions that Trump managed to foist on those that voted for him.  "Trump will fix it" is going to be my refrain to get me through these next four years, my inside joke to myself while I hope that things don't completely break beyond repair.

How could anyone have possibly believed Trump would "fix" the economy, much less bring down inflation, balance the budget, and establish a sovereign wealth fund?  Just like when he promised to build a wall and have Mexico pay for it, just a smidge of common sense should have looked at how ridiculously expensive deporting millions and fighting a trade war from a trade deficit position was going to be...  This time around, were starting from high debt, high bond yields...  no ZIRP and trillions of headroom that Trump had back in 2016.  Nope, every hit to the top and bottom line sends us further over 100% debt to GDP ratio and makes our debt that much harder/more expensive to sell.   

I expect this thread will actually document FIRE failure on a national level when all is said and done.

[Vashy]

Now that I've had a week to begin to processing Trump returning to the White House, as well as his chaotic cabinet picks that are coming thick and fast, I can't help but look at this thread as a great example of the impressive delusions that Trump managed to foist on those that voted for him.  "Trump will fix it" is going to be my refrain to get me through these next four years, my inside joke to myself while I hope that things don't completely break beyond repair.

If this goes like "normal" authoritarian/cult of personality-type organizations, the response will be "If Trump knew about this, he'd fix it" - so incompetence and bad effects will be blamed on his underlings who failed to properly implement the Fuehrer's leader's vision. Which gives the leader lots of backings to regularly "purge" his inner circle. Been there, done it about a thousand times.

[ebella]

There is waste in any organization. I am sure there is lot of waste in federal government of United States of America it is a humongous organization. Definition of bloat will differ based on perspective. For instance 1960s majority of people felt Nasa and Space program are waste, it was not widely embraced by all as we think they did.

Cynic in me tells me that real objective is to weaken federal government. Put its employees on notice and build culture of fear at its core. Say you cross wrong people, you and your department are part of efficiency cut. What that means is feds cannot react strongly to abuses by any organizations like states and businesses. You can extend to external threats as well. Governments across the globe can use these individuals in power to blunt US response to their actions.

I am a govt attny (I specialize in investigating fraudulent use of govt funding and defending govt regulations related to expenditure of govt funding by states and private sector). I will likely be fired, as will many ar my agency and others. As a manager I absolutely agree with some of project 2025 that there needs to be more accountability and incentives to recruit and retain good employees and eliminate bad ones. My worst employees are all older 50+, many of them fit the DEI targets Biden emphasized, and would never make it in the private sector. My best employees are millenials who came from private sector or elite collegiate institutes because they wanted work life balance and genuinely care about making the country better. The worst employees are paid more, do less work bc coaching/managing them is harder to do than assigning work to other ppl or doing it myself and leadership discourages unsatisfactory performance ratings and often settles terminations. Making govt jobs less secure based on agency, administration or perceived political allegiance will mean that the best employees leave and the worst, who had nowhere to go, won't. It means no one wants to be a manager and take on more responsibility. It's already happening. Our communiactions are already being foia-ed for words like trump or election. I'm a rising star at my agency (never lost a case, recovered millions for govt, awards and outstanding performance every cycle, 2 promotions before my probationary period expired) but, with everyone fleeing, there simply is not enough private sector need to absorb us.  I'm already applying elsewhere and divesting in the US economy and my community and exploring residency in other countries. So are others. lots of ppl work for fed govt, esp in DMV. These regional economies will be crushed but, if you want to cripple govt, this is a great way to do it.

[tooqk4u22]

My example, while anecdotal, was a representation of that....it was tour of a public middle school (there are two to choose from) one is more diverse than the other. At that tour, at least 10 families that i heard immediately said nope - of the 10 half sent their kids to private and the other half sent to the other middle school that is less diverse and on the right side.  In the last year or so, the choice has gone away and our specific neighborhood as been lined to the "right" school and most in the neighborhood speak openly about being so glad that their kids won't have to go to the "wrong" school.  My kids all went to the "wrong" school and did well and have a diverse group of friends. Just anecdotal.

Your observation sounds reasonable/believable, but I wonder if you're drawing the correct conclusion from it.

When parents are choosing between two schools, there's a tendency to look at school performance ratings and heavily (often in my opinion overly) weighting their choice based on this.  For a whole variety of reasons (ranging from average income of attending families, prevalence of secondary schooling of parents, speaking a secondary language as primary, etc) it's very common for schools with higher percentages of minorities to test lower.  It seems reasonable to conclude that many parents are going to want their kid to go to the higher testing school and the decision has little to do with race.

FWIW, I believe that there's a value in going to a diverse school.  85% of the students in the school my son is currently going to are visible minorities.  The lower test scores concerned me quite a bit when we were figuring out which school to send him to.

I hear you....but I don't think I am off base.  These were middle schools so no real comparative data to distinguish them.   But the perception of expecting of better scores l, less problems or whatever was there.  However the only basis for these presumptions can only be based on socioeconomic or racial factors, which unfortunately are interwoven most often.

And fine, base ones choices on wanting the best for one's kids...but live by the ideals that one clearly spouses to others  or just own it.

[tooqk4u22]

I live in an area/state that is highly democratic with large proportion of high income households and work with a similar cohort (clients, coworkers, managers, etc).....so it is more than a handful.   Its very much a nimby mentality.....ya know, "hey we need more affordable housing...oh wait, but it shouldn't be in my township." I didn't say anything about hate but this cohort does like its segregation from lower income people.

My example, while anecdotal, was a representation of that....it was tour of a public middle school (there are two to choose from) one is more diverse than the other. At that tour, at least 10 families that i heard immediately said nope - of the 10 half sent their kids to private and the other half sent to the other middle school that is less diverse and on the right side.  In the last year or so, the choice has gone away and our specific neighborhood as been lined to the "right" school and most in the neighborhood speak openly about being so glad that their kids won't have to go to the "wrong" school.  My kids all went to the "wrong" school and did well and have a diverse group of friends. Just anecdotal.

Is this a Dems problem or is this a human problem?

I suggest this because I'm from a very red state and from a place similar to what you've described. Very white, very well to do, and very Trumpy. They have their own neighborhood/town schools and the people there speak about the very same topics you described. They are very pleased that due to they way the city/county/natural boundaries they are separated from the less wealthy, less white neighborhoods. Each time the county tries to bus kids from other schools to increase the diversity in the well to do, white schools I grew up attending, there are white people there who react badly. There isn't the overt kind of pushback as seen in the history books i.e. the KKK or cross burnings but people beat around the bush and make their points about their dissatisfaction. 

Not everyone there is like that but they narrow minded ones are influential and nurmerous enough to shape the community.

I agree, people can suck.....and 100% agree the affluent overall discriminate against anyone that will in their minds bring down their neighborhood.  But in the context of this election, the losing party spent a lot of time talking about how discriminatory the other party was.....ivory tower mentality does not work.

I was at a gathering this weekend and the rhetoric was the same, "Trump and company very bad and terrible, can't believe they are doing this to america!"

Followed by "yeah, they are dumb!" referring to working class and another that "130 million people can't even read a bedtime story to their kids!"

I dont care what side of the aisle this comes from  just happens to be that i am among the left, I don't like it.

Money is power, power corrupts, and that is where we are....

[PeteD01]

Nice summary of the macroeconomic impact of Musk’s budget plans:

Trump is Making America Poor Again
Richard J Murphy

Trump says he will make America great again, but if he cuts $2 trillion from the US Federal budget of $6.7 trillion – as he says he wants to do – then the impact on millions of US people will be catastrophic. The reality is that he seems to be setting out to Make America Poor Again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0WK5JRFF2w

[joemandadman189]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCfc5Pp2ysg

interesting take -

[Telecaster]

^ It sounds good but I give them an "F" for originality.   We got that same pitch almost word for word back in 2016.   In his "I alone can fix it!" speech Trump promised to scrutinize every single government agency in his 100 days in office and slash regulations.    The “deconstruction of the administrative state”  was a campaign buzz phrase.   Trump promised to bring business-like efficiency to the federal government and he put it front and center in his 2016 campaign.   

But after four years, it isn't clear that regulations were cut in any meaningful way.   The tax laws changed, but I'm not sure you can say the tax code got smaller or simpler.   The IRS lost had count, but just made it harder for citizens deal with the IRS.

Trump promised to renegotiate NAFTA (worst trade deal in the history of the US!).  But USMCA was an incremental update to NAFTA rather than a new trade framework.

Congress got rid of the ACA individual mandate which counts as a reduction in regulations, but the number of people it affected was tiny.  And it didn't change the structure of the ACA.  Remember Trump promised to replace with ACA with something better.   Yet he never proposed a replacement.

I'm going down the list mentally, and I can't think of any government agencies that were overhauled, reformed, or worked more efficiently under Trump.   Some agencies definitely advanced different priorities, but that's not the same as working more efficiently.   

I appreciate these guys' enthusiasm, but I find it implausible Trump will do something this time in area that he didn't do last time.



 

[Kris]

^ It sounds good but I give them an "F" for originality.   We got that same pitch almost word for word back in 2016.   In his "I alone can fix it!" speech Trump promised to scrutinize every single government agency in his 100 days in office and slash regulations.    The “deconstruction of the administrative state”  was a campaign buzz phrase.   Trump promised to bring business-like efficiency to the federal government and he put it front and center in his 2016 campaign.   

But after four years, it isn't clear that regulations were cut in any meaningful way.   The tax laws changed, but I'm not sure you can say the tax code got smaller or simpler.   The IRS lost had count, but just made it harder for citizens deal with the IRS.

Trump promised to renegotiate NAFTA (worst trade deal in the history of the US!).  But USMCA was an incremental update to NAFTA rather than a new trade framework.

Congress got rid of the ACA individual mandate which counts as a reduction in regulations, but the number of people it affected was tiny.  And it didn't change the structure of the ACA.  Remember Trump promised to replace with ACA with something better.   Yet he never proposed a replacement.

I'm going down the list mentally, and I can't think of any government agencies that were overhauled, reformed, or worked more efficiently under Trump.   Some agencies definitely advanced different priorities, but that's not the same as working more efficiently.   

I appreciate these guys' enthusiasm, but I find it implausible Trump will do something this time in area that he didn't do last time.

And why should they? They managed to pull the wool over enough people’s eyes to get elected again. What incentive would they have to actually do something now?

[dandarc]

^ It sounds good but I give them an "F" for originality.   We got that same pitch almost word for word back in 2016.   In his "I alone can fix it!" speech Trump promised to scrutinize every single government agency in his 100 days in office and slash regulations.    The “deconstruction of the administrative state”  was a campaign buzz phrase.   Trump promised to bring business-like efficiency to the federal government and he put it front and center in his 2016 campaign.   

But after four years, it isn't clear that regulations were cut in any meaningful way.   The tax laws changed, but I'm not sure you can say the tax code got smaller or simpler.   The IRS lost had count, but just made it harder for citizens deal with the IRS.

Trump promised to renegotiate NAFTA (worst trade deal in the history of the US!).  But USMCA was an incremental update to NAFTA rather than a new trade framework.

Congress got rid of the ACA individual mandate which counts as a reduction in regulations, but the number of people it affected was tiny.  And it didn't change the structure of the ACA.  Remember Trump promised to replace with ACA with something better.   Yet he never proposed a replacement.

I'm going down the list mentally, and I can't think of any government agencies that were overhauled, reformed, or worked more efficiently under Trump.   Some agencies definitely advanced different priorities, but that's not the same as working more efficiently.   

I appreciate these guys' enthusiasm, but I find it implausible Trump will do something this time in area that he didn't do last time.

And why should they? They managed to pull the wool over enough people’s eyes to get elected again. What incentive would they have to actually do something now?

For everyone's sake, I hope you're right.

[Kris]

^ It sounds good but I give them an "F" for originality.   We got that same pitch almost word for word back in 2016.   In his "I alone can fix it!" speech Trump promised to scrutinize every single government agency in his 100 days in office and slash regulations.    The “deconstruction of the administrative state”  was a campaign buzz phrase.   Trump promised to bring business-like efficiency to the federal government and he put it front and center in his 2016 campaign.   

But after four years, it isn't clear that regulations were cut in any meaningful way.   The tax laws changed, but I'm not sure you can say the tax code got smaller or simpler.   The IRS lost had count, but just made it harder for citizens deal with the IRS.

Trump promised to renegotiate NAFTA (worst trade deal in the history of the US!).  But USMCA was an incremental update to NAFTA rather than a new trade framework.

Congress got rid of the ACA individual mandate which counts as a reduction in regulations, but the number of people it affected was tiny.  And it didn't change the structure of the ACA.  Remember Trump promised to replace with ACA with something better.   Yet he never proposed a replacement.

I'm going down the list mentally, and I can't think of any government agencies that were overhauled, reformed, or worked more efficiently under Trump.   Some agencies definitely advanced different priorities, but that's not the same as working more efficiently.   

I appreciate these guys' enthusiasm, but I find it implausible Trump will do something this time in area that he didn't do last time.

And why should they? They managed to pull the wool over enough people’s eyes to get elected again. What incentive would they have to actually do something now?

For everyone's sake, I hope you're right.

Oh, they’ll do plenty of other shit. Just not the stuff they promised to Trump voters.

[Just Joe]

Hey, question: why did the "Well I hope the Dems are Proud of Themselves" thread get locked?"

Nobody was throwing a temper tantrum or shooting metaphorical arrows are each other.

[sixwings]

Hey, question: why did the "Well I hope the Dems are Proud of Themselves" thread get locked?"

Nobody was throwing a temper tantrum or shooting metaphorical arrows are each other.

Prob cus it was just morphing into a discussion about another Trump term, rather than an election campaign discussion, and we dont need that thread + the Trump 2.0 + this thread.

Good news for the national fire movement! Trumps new Commerce Secretary seems to think the early 1900s was the golden age of America because there was no income tax and only tariffs and rich people had so much money that it actually trickled down to the workers! We're well on our way to making a sovereign wealth fund through regressive taxation and a burgeoning billionare class that will trickle the wealth down! Just need to fire some gov't employees who are responsible for pesky regulations and we're there!

At Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month, Lutnick said the US was most prosperous during the early 1900s, when there was “no income tax and all we had was tariffs.”

“We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it,” said Lutnick, 63, who has been advocating for higher tariffs. As a candidate, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on goods from China, as well as 10% tariffs on goods from other countries.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/19/politics/howard-lutnick-commerce-secretary/index.html

[Scandium]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCfc5Pp2ysg

interesting take -

That was idiotic, and/or naive to a level that should be embarrassing to anyone involved! That any of those people Trump or his goons give a single shit about "government efficiency" is laughable! The only thing that matters to him is enriching himself, and going after his enemies. He told us that the whole campaign! 80% of his rambling was about personal grievance. He hardly mentioned policy, because he don't care. This time his picks are only people who are slavishly loyal to him. Yes they might shred some agencies, but only because they are preventing "his people" from making more money. Allowing children to work 16 hrs in coal mines, or toxic waste dumping in Yellowstone is certainly "less regulation", but is that therefore automatically a good thing? Who decides?

The analysis, with a dumb graph, is also extremely silly. "government spends more money now than before, therefore inefficient".. Why? Not even adjusted for inflation! And how much more complex is the world now than in the 70s? How much more is the government doing? Any analysis that shows the government "waste" more money than any similar organization of this size, with this broad a scope? Many agencies are responsible for managing a continent-sized landmass and people, how efficient do we expect that to be? And how do you even measure that? Is 5% wasted? 30%? Do we have numbers? Walmart has 1.6 mill employees, still fewer than the US military (and vastly less complex operations), how much was waste do they have? Is that even comparable?

[bacchi]

Good news for the national fire movement! Trumps new Commerce Secretary seems to think the early 1900s was the golden age of America because there was no income tax and only tariffs and rich people had so much money that it actually trickled down to the workers! We're well on our way to making a sovereign wealth fund through regressive taxation and a burgeoning billionare class that will trickle the wealth down! Just need to fire some gov't employees who are responsible for pesky regulations and we're there!

At Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month, Lutnick said the US was most prosperous during the early 1900s, when there was “no income tax and all we had was tariffs.”

“We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it,” said Lutnick, 63, who has been advocating for higher tariffs. As a candidate, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on goods from China, as well as 10% tariffs on goods from other countries.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/19/politics/howard-lutnick-commerce-secretary/index.html

Wow, that is one of the the stupidest things I've ever heard.

Does he believe it or is he trying to convince Trump voters? Will we get other "benefits" of 1905 like the 60 hour work week and child labor?

[Just Joe]

And dumping all the industrial waste into the rivers for easy, cost efficient disposal.

[sixwings]

Good news for the national fire movement! Trumps new Commerce Secretary seems to think the early 1900s was the golden age of America because there was no income tax and only tariffs and rich people had so much money that it actually trickled down to the workers! We're well on our way to making a sovereign wealth fund through regressive taxation and a burgeoning billionare class that will trickle the wealth down! Just need to fire some gov't employees who are responsible for pesky regulations and we're there!

At Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month, Lutnick said the US was most prosperous during the early 1900s, when there was “no income tax and all we had was tariffs.”

“We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it,” said Lutnick, 63, who has been advocating for higher tariffs. As a candidate, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on goods from China, as well as 10% tariffs on goods from other countries.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/19/politics/howard-lutnick-commerce-secretary/index.html

Wow, that is one of the the stupidest things I've ever heard.

Does he believe it or is he trying to convince Trump voters? Will we get other "benefits" of 1905 like the 60 hour work week and child labor?

The conservative court is definitely on that one.

I love that Trump wants to enact a tariff to replace income taxes, but also wants to eliminate imports so that american production increases. If you want tariffs to replace income taxes you need A LOT of imports. The whole thing is beyond stupid. And just when you think it can't get even more stupid, Mehmet Oz enters the scene.

[frugalecon]

Good news for the national fire movement! Trumps new Commerce Secretary seems to think the early 1900s was the golden age of America because there was no income tax and only tariffs and rich people had so much money that it actually trickled down to the workers! We're well on our way to making a sovereign wealth fund through regressive taxation and a burgeoning billionare class that will trickle the wealth down! Just need to fire some gov't employees who are responsible for pesky regulations and we're there!

At Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month, Lutnick said the US was most prosperous during the early 1900s, when there was “no income tax and all we had was tariffs.”

“We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it,” said Lutnick, 63, who has been advocating for higher tariffs. As a candidate, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on goods from China, as well as 10% tariffs on goods from other countries.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/19/politics/howard-lutnick-commerce-secretary/index.html

Wow, that is one of the the stupidest things I've ever heard.

Does he believe it or is he trying to convince Trump voters? Will we get other "benefits" of 1905 like the 60 hour work week and child labor?

The conservative court is definitely on that one.

I love that Trump wants to enact a tariff to replace income taxes, but also wants to eliminate imports so that american production increases. If you want tariffs to replace income taxes you need A LOT of imports. The whole thing is beyond stupid. And just when you think it can't get even more stupid, Mehmet Oz enters the scene.

In the immortal words of H.L. Mencken: “Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard.”

[Herbert Derp]

Vivek is out, it seems!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/vivek-ramaswamy-expected-to-depart-doge/

Out before DOGE even started! Looks like he wasn’t interested in doing any actual work. Now let’s see what happens with Elon!

Elon seems to have walked back somewhat on the $2T goal and now seems to think $1T is more realistic:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/elon-musk-says-2t-in-doge-cuts-best-case-outcome-lower-amount-likely/ar-BB1ravx3

[jinga nation]

Vivek is out, it seems!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/vivek-ramaswamy-expected-to-depart-doge/

Out before DOGE even started! Looks like he wasn’t interested in doing any actual work. Now let’s see what happens with Elon!

Elon seems to have walked back somewhat on the $2T goal and now seems to think $1T is more realistic:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/elon-musk-says-2t-in-doge-cuts-best-case-outcome-lower-amount-likely/ar-BB1ravx3

Grifter gonna grift! He probably realized there wasn't anything to profit from.

[reeshau]

Vivek is out, it seems!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/vivek-ramaswamy-expected-to-depart-doge/

Out before DOGE even started! Looks like he wasn’t interested in doing any actual work. Now let’s see what happens with Elon!

Elon seems to have walked back somewhat on the $2T goal and now seems to think $1T is more realistic:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/elon-musk-says-2t-in-doge-cuts-best-case-outcome-lower-amount-likely/ar-BB1ravx3

Grifter gonna grift! He probably realized there wasn't anything to profit from.

Gonna run for Governor of Ohio, since he missed out on Vance's seat.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/vivek-ramaswamy-doge-launch-run-ohio-governor-rcna188397

[Ron Scott]

It seems like Elon Musk and Donald Trump have a plan to do the following:

• Massively cut government spending by ~$2T, balance the federal budget, and create a surplus.

…

Musk has clarified this, saying the $2T was aspirational and that $1T would be more realistic. Fair enough.

MORE IMPORTANTLY—he has also stated that the underlying plan—big picture it seems—is “to balance the output of goods and services with the money supply…thus reducing or eliminating inflation”.

The focus on creating this balance is key to everything IMO: The government can keep printing money and giving it to whoever it wants to, but if it adds more money to the economy than the supply of goods and services—prices will obviously increase to recreate the balance.

It seems like these guys get it. Whether they can pull off the magic act is a different question.

I suspect Musk will want to build AI and robotics into this equation. If tech can be directed at productivity improvement it could start creating an oversupply…which can be balanced by printing more money and giving it away. Then lives will improve and a virtuous cycle will have started.

Quite the balancing act LOL, but fingers crossed.

[wenchsenior]

Vivek is out, it seems!

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/vivek-ramaswamy-expected-to-depart-doge/

Out before DOGE even started! Looks like he wasn’t interested in doing any actual work. Now let’s see what happens with Elon!

Elon seems to have walked back somewhat on the $2T goal and now seems to think $1T is more realistic:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/elon-musk-says-2t-in-doge-cuts-best-case-outcome-lower-amount-likely/ar-BB1ravx3

Good thing it isn't Elon (yet). I made no bets on how long Vivek would last, but have bet Elon would be out sometime around Feb 8-10...

[EscapeVelocity2020]

It seems like Elon Musk and Donald Trump have a plan to do the following:

• Massively cut government spending by ~$2T, balance the federal budget, and create a surplus.

…

Musk has clarified this, saying the $2T was aspirational and that $1T would be more realistic. Fair enough.

MORE IMPORTANTLY—he has also stated that the underlying plan—big picture it seems—is “to balance the output of goods and services with the money supply…thus reducing or eliminating inflation”.

The focus on creating this balance is key to everything IMO: The government can keep printing money and giving it to whoever it wants to, but if it adds more money to the economy than the supply of goods and services—prices will obviously increase to recreate the balance.

It seems like these guys get it. Whether they can pull off the magic act is a different question.

I suspect Musk will want to build AI and robotics into this equation. If tech can be directed at productivity improvement it could start creating an oversupply…which can be balanced by printing more money and giving it away. Then lives will improve and a virtuous cycle will have started.

Quite the balancing act LOL, but fingers crossed.

I'm not following the news too closely because it is so infuriating, starting with the launch of Trump and Melania meme coins with quote, the worst tokenomics of any crypto yet, end quote -

Trump Tuah Spits On America
trump memecoin is insane - Voidzilla

But if Trump or Musk actually said what I bolded above, then they are delusional.  I mean, sure, if we want to switch over to communism or seal our borders and become an economic closed system, then maybe that'll work...

[Scandium]

It seems like these guys get it.

Hahaha! Wow, you really got me with that one :D yeah.... [citation needed]

Are you talking about the sunsetting senile lunatic, or the drug-fueled guy who tweets nazi memes at 4 am while (allegedly) playing 1200 hrs of diablo?

[Herbert Derp]

1200 hrs of diablo

Does Elon ever actually claim to play that much videogames? It seemed pretty obvious to me that he doesn’t have time to play videogames and his gaming accounts are being managed by others.

Elon strikes me as someone who played a ton of videogames in the distant past and likes to relive his youth by occasionally playing again, but he no longer has the time to get to the “good part” of the game so he hires other people to play the game for him and progress to the part of the game he is interested in.

[Telecaster]

Musk has clarified this, saying the $2T was aspirational and that $1T would be more realistic. Fair enough.

MORE IMPORTANTLY—he has also stated that the underlying plan—big picture it seems—is “to balance the output of goods and services with the money supply…thus reducing or eliminating inflation”.

The focus on creating this balance is key to everything IMO: The government can keep printing money and giving it to whoever it wants to, but if it adds more money to the economy than the supply of goods and services—prices will obviously increase to recreate the balance.

It seems like these guys get it. Whether they can pull off the magic act is a different question.

To me they come across as very, very confused about basic economic concepts. 

That aside, this has every sign of being a big bunch of bullshit.   For one, two trillion dollars is a lot of money and a big percentage of the budget.   To cut that much there must be some sort of road map or rough plan of how to do it.

Of course, we've seen exactly zero.   Which means they don't have a plan.  And now they are walking it back, just like bullshitters always do.  At first the promise was cutting "at least" $2 trillion.  Now it is "a good shot" at $1 trillion.   Remarkable how the goal posts have moved after the election. 

I'll lay down a marker:  There won't be any significant budget cuts or deficit reduction.   Government spending is about 23% of GDP, or about $6.75 trillion.   I think it is fair to give the Wunderkinds a couple years to implement their plan (2025 budget is already passed for the most part).   Let's see if they cut  15-30% of the budget like they say they will (hint: they won't). 

And the other thing is we've heard this same line of bullshit before.  In 2016 Trump promised to eliminate the deficit in five years, using his powers as a super-businessman to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse.   Of course, he exploded the deficit right off the bat.   Now, he fairly gets a mulligan on his deficit promise because of COVID, but there was never any savings by cutting waste, fraud, and abuse, like he promised.   He never did anything in that regard at all.

But even though this same promise was all bullshit back then, you can trust him this time. 

[Scandium]

1200 hrs of diablo

Does Elon ever actually claim to play that much videogames? It seemed pretty obvious to me that he doesn’t have time to play videogames and his gaming accounts are being managed by others.

Elon strikes me as someone who played a ton of videogames in the distant past and likes to relive his youth by occasionally playing again, but he no longer has the time to get to the “good part” of the game so he hires other people to play the game for him and progress to the part of the game he is interested in.

this is so far down the list of my issues with Elon, or the world in general, that I refuse to spend a single second to learn anything more about this "controversy". I heard it in passing, and moved on

[Fru-Gal]

I find understanding his weaknesses both enjoyable and useful. His video gaming feuds are reaching a different audience that is laughing at his foibles.

And to answer the question, yes he did vocally claim to be one of the top players in the world, and then proceeded to make a ton of newbie mistakes while live streaming, destroying, in the process, the work that an entire team must have put into get him to that level. These are levels that require thousands of hours of gameplay.

[reeshau]

I feel I can now reveal that the Cyberturck looks a lot like a Cobra HISS to me.  It would make sense if Elon truly has some fascist aspirations, and is a gamer.

[GuitarStv]

I feel I can now reveal that the Cyberturck looks a lot like a Cobra HISS to me.  It would make sense if Elon truly has some fascist aspirations, and is a gamer.

Does nobody remember The Last Starfighter???

The cybertruck is a shittier version of the Star Car: