Musk Shares Clip Of Obama Calling For DOGE-Style Cuts In 2011
Elon Musk addressed critics of his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) last week by sharing a resurfaced video of former President Barack Obama announcing a similar initiative over a decade ago.
Posting on his X platform, Musk shared a 2011 clip of Obama introducing the “Campaign to Cut Waste,” a program aimed at curbing unnecessary government expenditures. Musk captioned it with a pointed remark: “Sounds exactly like DOGE.”
In the clip, Obama humorously remarked that then–Vice President Joe Biden would lead the campaign, saying, “Nobody messes with Joe.”
During his announcement, Obama pointed to examples of what he described as “pointless waste and stupid spending that doesn’t benefit anybody,” which had been uncovered early in the campaign, including continued funding for a folk music group’s website, known as the “Fiddlin’ Foresters.”
“No amount of waste is acceptable, especially when it’s your money,” Obama said. “Just as families are living within their means, government should too.”
Musk’s repost came amid criticism that DOGE was taking a blunt approach by cutting entire agencies and laying off thousands of employees. By sharing the Obama video, Musk appeared to highlight parallels and suggest that calls to reduce waste had once been bipartisan. He framed it as a reminder that even Democrats had championed the idea of making “tough decisions” to reduce excess government spending.
“Everyone knows that getting rid of the deficit will require some tough decisions, and that includes cutting back on billions of dollars in programs that a lot of people care about,” Obama said in the resurfaced clip.
While some viewers praised the comparison, others on X disagreed, arguing that Obama’s initiatives—such as cutting spending on vacant federal properties—were not comparable to Musk’s more drastic approach.
The original video had been recorded as Obama prepared for his 2012 re-election campaign. Some commenters on Musk’s post contended that the initiative had minimal impact on federal spending.
Podcaster Joe Rogan commented on the clip, observing that it “took 14 years and Elon Musk and Donald Trump for the talk to become action.”
Obama had described the initiative as a step toward “getting rid of the deficit,” though during his presidency, the federal budget deficit increased by 58 percent, adding over $6.7 trillion to the national debt. He also emphasized in the video that some spending needed to be cut “even if we didn’t have a deficit.”
As part of his waste-reduction efforts, Obama proposed targeting “thousands of buildings across the country that no one uses.”
In the video, Biden, who had been appointed to spearhead the campaign, pledged to pursue wasteful spending with a “relentless focus,” adding, “We’re holding ourselves accountable, and we’re deeply committed and focused on making government function better.”
The clip has resurfaced as DOGE continues to generate heated debate both in Washington and nationwide.
Supporters of Musk and President Trump have hailed the initiative, viewing the cuts as a necessary move to eliminate inefficient programs. Critics, however, argue that the sweeping reductions have also affected essential and effective services.
Several lawsuits have been filed by government unions and left-leaning organizations seeking to block Trump and Musk from eliminating agencies and positions. While many of these lawsuits have succeeded, the Trump administration is appealing several cases, with some expected to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Polling indicates that most Americans support the cuts, reflecting the divided response to the issue.