type: timeline_event
OMB Director Russell Vought testified before House appropriators that DOGE affiliates have become "institutionalized" as "in-house consultants as a part of the agency's leadership," revealing that although Elon Musk's wrecking crew officially disbanded, many operatives have "burrowed into" federal agencies to continue DOGE's mission through OMB. Vought, who admitted his goal is to "traumatize" federal workers and drastically slash funding for social programs, has institutionalized DOGE in his role as OMB director through mass firings and unlawfully canceling disbursement of funds appropriated by Congress.
The testimony confirmed that DOGE was and remains an effort to extinguish the existing government and create a new one in the image of oligarchs and far-right ideologues. Vought and Musk have eagerly shredded political, professional, and legal precedent in their effort to dismantle essential federal functions, with a continuity of approach: baselessly claiming something is "waste, fraud, and abuse," then taking a chainsaw to it. Vought is the architect of Schedule F, a regulatory plan to reclassify thousands of workers to make removal easier, and stated in private speeches he wanted to put career civil servants "in trauma."
Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle grilled Vought over the administration's sweeping cost-cutting plans, pressing him over President Trump's latest spending cut requests. The revelation that DOGE operatives remain embedded in OMB came as Vought faced growing controversy over using $15 million from the former USAID operating expenses to pay for his U.S. Marshals Service protection detail through the end of 2026. Although Musk stepped back from his official DOGE role after 134 days, with Amy Gleason appointed acting administrator in February, Vought emerged as the key figure institutionalizing DOGE's agenda, ensuring the government demolition continues beyond DOGE's scheduled July 4, 2026 termination date.