Elon Musk’s federal spending cuts: From ‘transgender monkeys’ to DEI budgets and checks to the dead

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have been tasked with cutting down $6.75 trillion in federal spending in 2024 under the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Working independently from the government, they aim to "dismantle bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies," as noted by President-elect Donald Trump. 

John Hart, CEO of the watchdog group Open the Books, said they would target “spending that has been on autopilot without real consideration or purpose.”

Some initial cost-cutting targets include:

In 2023, federal agencies reportedly sent $1.3 billion in checks to deceased individuals from the IRS, Medicare, and veterans’ groups, according to RealClear Investigations. Hart suggested this could be prevented by cross-referencing with the Treasury’s do-not-pay list.

Also in 2023, $171 million in unemployment and Social Security benefits went to incarcerated individuals thought to be unemployed. Additionally, Medicaid and Medicare issued $101 billion in improper payments due to fraud, and the IRS lost $546 million to tax cheats.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent $549,000 on experiments with cats in a Russian lab, according to *The Washington Times*. NIH also directed $33 million to a primate research facility called “Monkey Island,” $3.7 million to a study on monkeys and gambling, $12 million to test methamphetamine on monkeys, and $477,000 to research “transgender” monkeys.

In 2022, U.S. taxpayers funded a $4 million trip for Joe and Hunter Biden to Ireland, including $1.2 million for a sound and light setup and $760,000 for hotel reservations. Additionally, a $20,600 State Department grant funded “12 drag theater performances” in Ecuador.

Despite the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, FEMA projects another $70 billion in pandemic-related expenses by August 2026. Meanwhile, retired Dr. Anthony Fauci receives $15 million annually in security, a measure typically reserved only for former presidents.

A report by the Public Buildings Reform Board in March revealed that federal agencies, on average, use only 12% of their headquarters space. The General Services Administration still spends $2 billion annually to maintain government-owned offices and $5 billion to lease additional space.

The Department of Health and Human Services allocated $38.7 million for 294 employees focused on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Between 2017 and 2022, the State Department sent nearly $58.7 million to China, including $100,000 to promote “Gender Equality” through *New Yorker* magazine cartoons. 

These examples highlight potential areas for DOGE’s cuts to improve efficiency across federal expenditures.