Trump Backs Elon Musk's Plan to Slash Government Spending

[Social Media]

 

Former President Donald Trump has announced his intention to adopt Elon Musk’s proposal for a government efficiency commission aimed at reducing federal spending if re-elected. Trump revealed that Musk, who originally suggested the plan, has agreed to lead the commission “if he has the time.” The announcement was made during a speech before the Economic Club of New York in Midtown Manhattan, where Trump detailed a seven-pillar economic strategy.

 

“I will create a government efficiency commission tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government and making recommendations for drastic reforms,” Trump declared. He emphasized that the first order of business would be for the commission to develop an action plan to eliminate fraud and improper payments within six months, projecting savings in the trillions. Despite the ambitious nature of these claims, Trump did not specify the commission's size or funding sources, leaving questions about feasibility.

 

The plan aligns with Trump’s longstanding objective of firing more federal employees and potentially dismantling some federal agencies, a move he has repeatedly advocated. This announcement comes as part of a broader economic vision that Trump hopes to implement if he returns to office. However, given the federal government’s vast scale—employing millions of people and managing annual spending that exceeds $6 trillion—experts are skeptical about the promised benefits and the rapid timescale for implementation.

 

Despite a previously tumultuous relationship, Trump and Musk have recently reconciled, with Musk endorsing Trump earlier this summer following a rally incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Trump and attendees were targeted by a would-be assassin. This endorsement marks a notable shift, given Musk’s past critical comments about Trump. In 2022, shortly after Trump dismissed him as a “bullshit artist,” Musk remarked on his social media platform X, “I don’t hate the man, but it’s time for Trump to hang up his hat & sail into the sunset.”

 

The pair’s relationship has evolved publicly, with Musk interviewing Trump on X Spaces on August 12, although technical difficulties delayed the event by about 40 minutes. The two now appear united in their shared interest in reforming federal spending and government efficiency.

 

Trump’s broader economic plan, outlined during his speech, also includes several other key initiatives, such as cutting federal regulations, imposing higher tariffs, and making permanent the 2017 tax cuts that he signed into law during his presidency. These proposals form part of Trump’s vision to reshape the American economy, emphasizing a more streamlined government and reduced federal oversight.

 

While Musk’s role in potentially leading this commission adds a high-profile dimension to Trump’s proposal, questions remain about the logistics, scope, and realistic impact of the suggested reforms. As Trump continues to rally support for his economic vision, the proposed efficiency commission highlights his commitment to significant government restructuring, albeit with challenges ahead in turning these bold ideas into reality.

 

Credit: NBC 2024-09-07

 

 

 

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[Tug]

They have no plan other than to fire everyone….and trump claims to be pro labor….even the most dim witted people have to see through this.gutting the civil service will bring our system down that ain’t a good thing.people like musk and trump are so disconnected they have absolutely no idea of what something like this would do to our society.it is a recipe for disaster no doubt about it.

[Chomper Higgot]

There is not an American alive more firmly latched on to the Federal tit than Musk.

 

The man is a Federal Dollar subsidy junky.

 

[BKKKevin]

Without EV tariffs Tesla would be worth about as much as X… 

[animalmagic]

3 hours ago, BKKKevin said:

Without EV tariffs Tesla would be worth about as much as X… 

Or Truth Social

[spidermike007]

This is very rich coming from a man who raised the national deficit by $7 trillion. He would say or do anything at this point to get elected. His level of desperation is reaching epic and historic proportions. I am having so much fun watching him and Vance meltdown before our very eyes. And I'm sure much of his desperation is driven by the knowledge that he will very possibly be spending some time in prison, if he doesn't get elected.

 

Lock him up. 

 

[bwanajohn]

You mean like not  making the the secret service etc stay in Trumps overpriced hotels.Who can believe anything he says.

[ericbj]

It is questionable as to whether Trump, who during his presidency contributed massively to increasing the national debt, is the best person to attempt to begin addressing the problem.

 

However he has raised the issue.  And that is better than nothing.

 

Currently, the only alternative candidate for the presidency proposes only doing what will massively increase the debt.  By "money-printing".  Which will be self-defeating, by massively increasing "inflation" [devaluation of the dollar].

 

Reining in an out-of-control debt whose rising interest payments will soon be the greatest item in the budget, requires a planned and multi-pronged strategy.

 

Removal of unproductive and counter-productive employment from government payrolls and their channelling into jobs that provide useful goods and services is but one of many reforms required.

 

Acceptance of being an integral partner in a global community, instead of a global dictator, will lead to massive reductions in foreign policy interventions and the need for 700 or so overseas military bases for so-called "defence".
 
Also required is a devaluation of the dollar [i.e. "inflation"] which needs to be attempted on a conscious, controlled basis - rather than blindly induced.  [if in doubt, see how Spain and Greece have been reducing their national debts]

 

Hard decisions, and hardship lie ahead.  Because of the soft option of "money-printing" that has been used to date.  Which is leading to breakdown and total chaos.

 

The challenges facing the U.S. are as much psychological - a re-thinking of 'solutions' that don't work - as practical.

 

With the right approaches, the U.S. will be able to pass through a dark and difficult tunnel, to re-emerge into a bright future.  It has the potential.  It needs the will.

[stevenl]

14 minutes ago, ericbj said:

It is questionable as to whether Trump, who during his presidency contributed massively to increasing the national debt, is the best person to attempt to begin addressing the problem.

 

However he has raised the issue.  And that is better than nothing.

 

Currently, the only alternative candidate for the presidency proposes only doing what will massively increase the debt.  By "money-printing".  Which will be self-defeating, by massively increasing "inflation" [devaluation of the dollar].

 

Reining in an out-of-control debt whose rising interest payments will soon be the greatest item in the budget, requires a planned and multi-pronged strategy.

 

Removal of unproductive and counter-productive employment from government payrolls and their channelling into jobs that provide useful goods and services is but one of many reforms required.

 

Acceptance of being an integral partner in a global community, instead of a global dictator, will lead to massive reductions in foreign policy interventions and the need for 700 or so overseas military bases for so-called "defence".
 
Also required is a devaluation of the dollar [i.e. "inflation"] which needs to be attempted on a conscious, controlled basis - rather than blindly induced.  [if in doubt, see how Spain and Greece have been reducing their national debts]

 

Hard decisions, and hardship lie ahead.  Because of the soft option of "money-printing" that has been used to date.  Which is leading to breakdown and total chaos.

 

The challenges facing the U.S. are as much psychological - a re-thinking of 'solutions' that don't work - as practical.

 

With the right approaches, the U.S. will be able to pass through a dark and difficult tunnel, to re-emerge into a bright future.  It has the potential.  It needs the will.

Her proposals are financially and economically much better as shown many times already.

[ericbj]

27 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Her proposals are financially and economically much better as shown many times already.

 

Please expatiate upon upon your briefly stated contention.

[Wuvu2]

He did a great job at Twitter, what could go wrong?

[JonnyF]

America will be in safe hands with Trump and Musk.

 

November will be awesome. 

[morrobay]

This is what it might be about  

[thaibeachlovers]

8 hours ago, JonnyF said:

America will be in safe hands with Trump and Musk.

 

November will be awesome. 

It certainly won't be any worse off.

 

BTW, Musk is only copying NZ. The government in NZ has been laying waste to the bureaucracy, and long overdue too.

 

https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/05/02/poll-majority-agree-with-public-sector-job-cuts/

[thaibeachlovers]

13 hours ago, bwanajohn said:

You mean like not  making the the secret service etc stay in Trumps overpriced hotels.Who can believe anything he says.

After Trump stops the war in Ukraine there will be plenty of money for the secret service to stay in hotels.

[Tug]

46 minutes ago, morrobay said:

This is what it might be about  

That was under the bush/Republican administration hopefully the contractors were fined and blackballed they certainly deserve it.

[Tug]

38 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

After Trump stops the war in Ukraine there will be plenty of money for the secret service to stay in hotels.

You mean after trump surrenders Ukraine and nato to his pal putin and surrenders Taiwan and the Philippines to China there fixed it for ya.

[john donson]

who here knows that things like nasa, boeing, get  COSTS + profits from the government... that is why simple items can have Thai corrupted prices and this is what Elon figured out and start making his own parts...  big money scam/waste/...

 

not enough problems on earth, right...to go want to go in space...

 

what does that international space station brought as benefits or the moon landing...

 

or the stockpile atomic weapons, only used twice in 80 years...

 

 

probably the price of affordable healthcare...

[thaibeachlovers]

10 minutes ago, john donson said:

who here knows that things like nasa, boeing, get  COSTS + profits from the government... that is why simple items can have Thai corrupted prices and this is what Elon figured out and start making his own parts...  big money scam/waste/...

 

not enough problems on earth, right...to go want to go in space...

 

what does that international space station brought as benefits or the moon landing...

 

or the stockpile atomic weapons, only used twice in 80 years...

 

 

probably the price of affordable healthcare...

Technologies developed for space have become common place eg the satellites used for communication, though if they made social media possible perhaps not a benefit to human kind.

[bamnutsak]

Like this hasn't been done a gazillion times before.

 

Mandatory/direct spending represents 2/3.

 

Top 8

 

13 % Health.
13 % Medicare.
13 % National Defense.
10 % Income Security.
5 % Veterans Benefits and Services.
4 % Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services.
2 % Transportation.
1 % Community and Regional Development.

 

https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/americas-finance-guide/federal-spending/

 

[stoner]

5 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Technologies developed for space have become common place eg the satellites used for communication, though if they made social media possible perhaps not a benefit to human kind.

 

velcro and duct tape. :P

[stevenl]

12 hours ago, ericbj said:

 

Please expatiate upon upon your briefly stated contention.

Many threads here, e.g. https://aseannow.com/topic/1337274-tax-cuts-or-tax-hikes-harris-and-trump-clash-on-economic-strategies-for-the-us/#comment-19207733

 

[riclag]

11 hours ago, JonnyF said:

America will be in safe hands with Trump and Musk.

 

November will be awesome. 

One of the richest guys in the world

attempts at downsizing  un elected bureaucrats in the Washington Establishment!

Think of the billions my country would save!

 

just sayin

[novacova]

13 minutes ago, riclag said:

One of the richest guys in the world

attempts at downsizing  un elected bureaucrats in the Washington Establishment!

Think of the billions my country would save!

 

just sayin

This really annoys the left because they love donating their tax dollars to unnecessary bureaucracies. 

[James105]

3 hours ago, john donson said:

who here knows that things like nasa, boeing, get  COSTS + profits from the government... that is why simple items can have Thai corrupted prices and this is what Elon figured out and start making his own parts...  big money scam/waste/...

 

not enough problems on earth, right...to go want to go in space...

 

what does that international space station brought as benefits or the moon landing...

 

or the stockpile atomic weapons, only used twice in 80 years...

 

 

probably the price of affordable healthcare...

 

Humans have always made scientific progress despite always being on the precipice of destruction.   Going into space is the next step to find another planet to colonise to ensure the future of humanity as one day a giant asteroid will slam into earth - it has happened before and it will happen again.   When that day comes the humans alive then will be grateful that the world wasn't controlled by selfish humans who only gave thought for the their own generation in the here and now.   Sure you don't see the immediate benefits as there aren't any, but thankfully there have always been those with vision who think differently, which is why our lives here today are exponentially better than it was for our ancestors.  

[riclag]

On 9/7/2024 at 3:38 AM, Social Media said:

 

The plan aligns with Trump’s longstanding objective of firing more federal employees and potentially dismantling some federal agencies, a move he has repeatedly advocated. This announcement comes as part of a broader economic vision that Trump hopes to implement if he returns to office. However, given the federal government’s vast scale—employing millions of people and managing annual spending that exceeds $6 trillion—experts are skeptical about the promised benefits and the rapid timescale for implementation

 

where to make a dent first , knowing the USA $ Trump 

 must save Social Security .over 1.2 trillion spent in a year in 2022.

 

 

 

 

[Yellowtail]

Kamala Harris is in charge of the National Space Council. 

 

Elon Musk is in charge of getting the astronauts back that are stranded. 

 

Which job requires more competence? 

[Yellowtail]

We spend more servicing the debt than we do on defense. 

[spidermike007]

20 hours ago, ericbj said:

It is questionable as to whether Trump, who during his presidency contributed massively to increasing the national debt, is the best person to attempt to begin addressing the problem.

 

However he has raised the issue.  And that is better than nothing.

 

Currently, the only alternative candidate for the presidency proposes only doing what will massively increase the debt.  By "money-printing".  Which will be self-defeating, by massively increasing "inflation" [devaluation of the dollar].

 

Reining in an out-of-control debt whose rising interest payments will soon be the greatest item in the budget, requires a planned and multi-pronged strategy.

 

Removal of unproductive and counter-productive employment from government payrolls and their channelling into jobs that provide useful goods and services is but one of many reforms required.

 

Acceptance of being an integral partner in a global community, instead of a global dictator, will lead to massive reductions in foreign policy interventions and the need for 700 or so overseas military bases for so-called "defence".
 
Also required is a devaluation of the dollar [i.e. "inflation"] which needs to be attempted on a conscious, controlled basis - rather than blindly induced.  [if in doubt, see how Spain and Greece have been reducing their national debts]

 

Hard decisions, and hardship lie ahead.  Because of the soft option of "money-printing" that has been used to date.  Which is leading to breakdown and total chaos.

 

The challenges facing the U.S. are as much psychological - a re-thinking of 'solutions' that don't work - as practical.

 

With the right approaches, the U.S. will be able to pass through a dark and difficult tunnel, to re-emerge into a bright future.  It has the potential.  It needs the will.

The ideas that you express are very good, and would indeed be very productive if they were put into practice. But we've seen with four years of the Trump presidency that he's very good at talking, and very poor at acting, or it's getting legislation passed.

 

And he's very poor at fulfilling promises, we call this the very definition of an empty suit. 

[Yellowtail]

1 minute ago, spidermike007 said:

The ideas that you express are very good, and would indeed be very productive if they were put into practice. But we've seen with four years of the Trump presidency that he's very good at talking, and very poor at acting, or it's getting legislation passed.

 

And he's very poor at fulfilling promises, we call this the very definition of an empty suit. 

 

"Data released by the Census Bureau today show that 2019 was a historic year for raising Americans’ living standards. Real median household income reached a record high, and poverty reached a record low. Improvements in income and poverty were the largest in over 50 years. Minority groups—including black, Hispanic and Asian Americans—experienced the largest gains."

 

Incomes Hit a Record High and Poverty Reached a Record Low in 2019 – The White House (archives.gov)