Doge overstated claims to have saved Americans $110bn, watchdog finds

Key Points:

• A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that Doge, the body tasked with reducing US government spending, made incorrect or unsupported claims about saving billions of dollars, including $110bn reported in its "Wall of Receipts."
• The GAO criticized Doge for a lack of transparency and insufficient evidence in how it calculated savings, noting that 96% of reported savings could not be verified and some leases identified for termination were already ending before Doge's establishment.
• Specific claims, such as $1.7bn saved from terminating a Defense Department IT contract, were found to be false since the contract was never ended, highlighting issues with data quality and reporting accuracy.
• Doge, led by Elon Musk until May 2025, aimed to save up to $2tn annually by cutting federal jobs and programs but fell short, with its website claiming $214bn in savings; the group was closed in July 2026 amid controversy.
• The audit, requested by Democratic Senators Gary Peters and Richard Blumenthal, criticized Doge's efforts as misleading and damaging to government operations, with some cost-cutting moves reversed or challenged legally.