Despite promises to slash government spending, the Trump administration has burned through an enormous amount of taxpayer money.
Trump’s spending in first 100 days raises questions despite efficiency pledges
Donald Trump promised to cut government spending and make America “rich again.” But new figures show that his administration has spent more than ever before.
In his first 100 days back in office, the Trump administration recorded $220 billion in additional spending compared to the same period last year. This contrasts sharply with Trump’s public push to reduce government expenditures.
Trump’s campaign promise included massive spending cuts and the creation of DOGE
A core part of Trump’s campaign focused on cutting waste and streamlining federal operations. To achieve this, he appointed Elon Musk to lead a new agency—the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
DOGE was tasked with eliminating waste, fraud, and unnecessary programs across all branches of government. On its official site, DOGE claims to have saved $160 billion through various cost-cutting measures.
These savings allegedly came from asset sales, lease cancellations, fraud prevention, and workforce reductions. However, these claims remain unverified and lack independent auditing.
Government spending still outweighed savings reported by DOGE
Despite DOGE’s claims of success, government spending in the first 100 days totaled far more than the savings. CBS News reported a $220 billion increase compared to the previous year.
Analysis of Treasury Department records revealed that the biggest spending spikes came from military payments and senior citizen benefits. Veterans Affairs alone received over $52 billion this year.
The White House has not provided a breakdown of total federal spending during this period, creating further concerns about transparency and accountability.
National debt continues to soar while cost of savings raises eyebrows
America’s national debt currently stands at an estimated $36.2 trillion. In this context, DOGE’s $160 billion in savings appears relatively minor.
Critics have also pointed out that it cost taxpayers approximately $135 billion just to operate DOGE itself. This has raised serious questions about the agency’s efficiency and return on investment.
A large portion of DOGE’s cost reportedly came from mass layoffs across the federal workforce. Thousands of government employees were let go under the banner of “cutting fat.”
Max Stier, president of the Partnership for Public Service, criticized the agency’s results. “We haven’t seen much focus on the waste DOGE is creating,” he said.
Stier emphasized that while DOGE was created to eliminate inefficiencies, it may be generating more of them. Dismissals and reorganizations have disrupted key departments.
Concerns continue to mount over the lack of independent oversight and clear outcomes from DOGE’s work.
Trump defends the layoffs as necessary to clean up government waste
Despite criticism, Trump defended his aggressive approach to downsizing government agencies. He said the country was “riddled with fat” and needed drastic change.
“We’re getting down to a point we think probably over the next two or three months, we’ll be pretty much satisfied with the people that are working hard and want to be members of the administration and our country,” he said at the end of March, The Independent reported.
“Our country was riddled with fat, and we’re getting rid of the fat,” he added.
At the end of March, Trump told The Independent that the administration would soon be fully staffed with people “who are working hard and want to serve the country.”
He believes the purge of federal employees is bringing the government closer to his vision of a leaner, more efficient machine.