The government's Ministry of Efficiency has launched a proactive effort to curb federal bureaucracy. However, conservatives in limited government should not assume that their financial liability is within reach.
The reality of the US financial situation remains terrible. In 2024, the federal government spent $6.8 trillion, but only $4.9 trillion in taxes were collected. This brought the deficit to $1.9 trillion, and by the end of the year, citizen debt reached $35.5 trillion.
How did our constitutional republic end in this mess?
To balance the budget, Doge will need to eliminate nearly $2 trillion in annual spending. Until then, national debt will continue to increase.
So far, the Trump administration's crackdown on waste, fraud and abuse has saved about $100 billion. But that is only a small part of what is needed and the challenges for the future remain large.
Executive Orders and Doge's actions are inherently weak and not constructed to last. Without legislative support, they can be reversed by the next administration. Meanwhile, established bureaucrats resist implementation and require strict enforcement from the government.
Legal challenges have already passed courts, and civil servant regulations will be used to slow progress. Still upset by Trump's early moves, the left-leaning media is preparing for a genuine counterattack of disinformation and manufactured rage. As temperatures rise across the country, we hope that media rhetoric will heat up, promoting protests that are likely to lead to violence and destruction.
When that happens, Republican legislators shook as usual. As the spending battle unfolds through ongoing resolutions, omnibus bills, and the battle of debt ceilings, or elusive budget proposals, Unipart politicians unite to protect the bureaucratic status quo.
They do so for three reasons. First, many are entrenched in the system and profit from it. They are swamp residents. Second, Republicans hold only a small majority in both rooms in Congress, and those facing reelection in battlefield districts will avoid controversial laws. Third, Democrats were able to take over the House or Senate in the medium term, eliminating the desire to reduce the federal bureaucracy.
Even if lawmakers find a will to act, another major obstacle remains: qualification spending. Congress has already approved large and popular programs such as Social Security and Medicare. As more baby boomers retire, these programs automatically cost more. Social Security has paid more than it has collected taxes since 2010, and has run out of trust funds. Worse, the federal government borrowed $1.7 trillion from its trust fund to cover other costs. This means Doge will not only cut $2 trillion a year to balance its budget, but it will also have to find a way to repay that $1.7 trillion while continuing to fund retirement benefits.
A bigger crisis is upon us. The federal government spent $900 billion on 2024 interest payments, making it the second largest budget item after Social Security. As national debt increases and interest rates rise, interest payments will quickly outweigh social security costs. With a $40 trillion debt and a 5% interest rate, the annual interest could reach $2 trillion.
How did our constitutional republic end in this mess?
The problem lies in the ability to expand bureaucracy in the legislative sector and increase spending. The only real restraint is the willingness to hold voters accountable at the ballot box. But it never happens. Power between parties, however, is growing, no matter who is in charge.
At some point, the American people must revise the constitution and summon political will to impose restrictions on Congress. Potential safeguards would impose a cap on government spending (for example, limiting this year's spending to 10% of GDP for the previous year), a time limit to reduce the impact of lobbyists, request a single issue invoice to prevent pork spending, grant the president a line item rejection, and require a balanced budget.
The American founder was miscalculated. They never imagined that a country that fought a revolution with government overreach would allow another oppressive system to take its place. They could not imagine a country built by the robust individualists who produced the Declaration of Independence and the Constitutional Declaration would become a society fascinated by collectivist ideology.
Doge's initial efforts are a promising start, but they are not enough. The fight for financial sanity will span multiple administrations and perhaps generations. Limited government conservatives must prepare for a long battle. Doge is just the first step in a much longer journey.
