Has hell officially frozen over for progressive politicians?
It sure seems to be trending that way as ultra-left Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has openly backed one of President-elect Donald Trump’s biggest “MAGA” initiatives he plans on rolling out when he takes office in January.
Sanders shocked his fellow leftists this weekend after he vocally supported Trump’s planned new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — with a catch.
As long as it takes aim at the Pentagon’s budget.
“Elon Musk is right. The Pentagon, with a budget of $886 billion, just failed its 7th audit in a row. It’s lost track of billions,” the 83-year-old Vermont senator posted on X.
Elon Musk is right.
The Pentagon, with a budget of $886 billion, just failed its 7th audit in a row. It’s lost track of billions.
Last year, only 13 senators voted against the Military Industrial Complex and a defense budget full of waste and fraud.
That must change.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) December 1, 2024
“Last year, only 13 senators voted against the Military Industrial Complex and a defense budget full of waste and fraud. That must change,” Sanders added.
Musk replied to Sanders’ post with several American flag emojis.
🇺🇸🇺🇸
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 1, 2024
“Sensible spending is not a partisan issue. The general public supports @DOGE holding government accountable to spend taxpayer money more wisely,” Musk’s America super PAC wrote in response.
Sanders is not the only progressive politician who has criticized US defense spending, something he has panned as “bloated and wasteful” while calling for more resources toward social spending.
Last week, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) echoed Sanders in suggesting that Democrats are willing to collaborate on attacking potentially wasteful spending — at least in the DOD.
“When it comes to cutting waste, fraud, and abuse and opening the 5 primes to more competition, there are Democrats on [the House Armed Services Committee] who will work with @elonmusk and @DOGE,” Khanna posted on X.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) recently mused that DOGE should take a look at re-evaluating the structure of the Department of Homeland Security, too.
Last month, the Department of Defense announced it had failed its seventh independent audit in a row, which has troubled both Republicans and Democrats. The department had been authorized to receive $824.3 billion in government money during the 2024 fiscal year.
Mike McCord, the Pentagon’s chief financial officer, has told reporters that no significant fraud was uncovered and that the department is working toward a “clean” audit, which will likely be possible several years from now.
After winning last month’s election, Trump announced that Musk and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, 39, would serve as co-heads of DOGE until it concludes its work by July 4, 2026.
DOGE is not actually a government department but instead an outside organization that will coordinate with the White House and Office of Management and Budget to root out waste.