Elon Musk’s promises of transparency in his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) faced new scrutiny Thursday following a report that exposed significant errors in the agency’s claimed budget savings. The report, published by The New York Times, raised doubts about DOGE’s credibility after discovering numerous mistakes in its financial reports.
After journalists identified major inaccuracies in DOGE’s so-called “wall of receipts,” the task force quietly attempted to remove the data. However, according to the Times, “the group changed its tactics” in response to scrutiny. “It began making its new mistakes harder to find, leaving its already secretive activities even less transparent than before,” the report stated.
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Despite these adjustments—including removing key details that previously allowed for public fact-checking—the Times’ analysis still uncovered further discrepancies. The investigation found that DOGE continued its trend of publishing “error-filled data that inflated its success at saving taxpayer money.”
“DOGE deleted some of its largest claims about the savings from canceled contracts after news reports pointed out that they were wrong,” the publication reported. “Nonetheless, that list of canceled contracts still contains errors. On Wednesday, the group was still claiming credit for saving $1.9 billion by canceling an Internal Revenue Service contract for tech help.”
However, as the analysis noted, “that contract was canceled under President Joseph R. Biden Jr.” “The website posted it, deleted it, then restored it. The group has not responded to questions about why either time,” the report added. The Times also found that “at least five of the 20 largest ‘savings’ appeared to be exaggerated, according to federal data and interviews with the nonprofits whose grants were on the list.”
“The website is the only place where this very powerful group has given a public accounting of its work. That accounting is still incomplete: It itemizes only a fraction of the money that the group claims to have saved, $115 billion as of Wednesday,” the report stated.
Despite these flaws, the Times acknowledged that the data remains “extremely valuable, providing a window into the group’s priorities, and revealing its struggles with the machinery and terminology of government.” “If the group is now going to fill its site with uncheckable claims, then it loses its value,” the Times pointed out.
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Gary Kalman, executive director of the anti-corruption nonprofit Transparency International U.S., emphasized the importance of accountability. “There is no reason that they should not be putting out the specifics and details behind what they’re cutting,” Kalman told the Times.
“They are saying that they are doing things that are long overdue and widely supported by the public. If that’s true, then wouldn’t you want to make sure that you’re touting the cuts that you make?” The controversy raises further questions about Musk’s approach to government efficiency and whether DOGE’s operations will hold up under continued scrutiny.
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