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Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 13

1. So @DataRepublican, who has been promoted repeatedly by @elonmusk, published this post claiming that methodology of the Musk Watch DOGE Tracker is flawed.

She claims in the post below that she could not find a single contract that ended in 2024 where the outlay was less than the "Potential Contract Value." Not one.

She does not have any idea what she is doing. In this thread I will provide 75 links to contracts that ended in 2024 where the outlay is less than the "Potential Contract Value," totalling $57 billion.

This is a small subset of such contracts, from only three agencies. Moreover, the broader point is that canceling an option to extend or expand a contract does not save any money. The government holds these options and could simply not exercise the options. As this thread demonstrates, it frequently does not.

@DataRepublican, I look forward to your corrections and apology.

Read 4 tweets

Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 12

1. The DOGE website is garbage. The claimed savings has no relationship to the data provided.

And the data that is provided grossly inflates the savings from each canceled contract.

So we just launched our own site — the Musk Watch DOGE Tracker — that breaks everything down

2. The Musk Watch DOGE Tracker, which is currently updated to reflect the latest data posted by DOGE, finds that the actual verifiable savings is 8.6 billion — 92% less than the claimed savings of $105 billion.

Follow this thread for an explanation.

muskwatch.com/p/introducing-…

3. The $105 billion has no relationship to the data posted on the website.

The actual cuts that are itemized in any fashion on the website total just $29.9 billion.

This includes $14.5 billion in grants where the only information provided is the federal department and the dollar amount.

Read 9 tweets

Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 10

1. In an extraordinary affidavit filed in federal court on Friday, a former senior civil servant at the Social Security Administration (SSA) detailed how deputies for Elon Musk forced their way into the agency, formed a clandestine unit, and gained access to its most sensitive databases.

Tiffany Flick, the affiant who served as the acting chief of staff to the commissioner of the agency until mid-February, also warned that careless actions by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) could lead to interruptions in Social Security payments.

2. The SSA was pressured to quickly onboard Akash Bobba, a 22-year-old software engineer who works for DOGE. They were also instructed to give Bobba extraordinary access to the private data of millions of Americans.

muskwatch.com/p/in-affidavit…

3. Much of the information DOGE sought from the SSA related to Musk’s fallacious belief that a significant percentage of Social Security payments are going to dead people

Flick explained that DOGE also misread the agency’s data again by assuming that multiple benefits paid to a single Social Security number indicated fraud.

However, payments to spouses and dependents can be routed through one Social Security number.

Read 5 tweets

Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 10

1. EXCLUSIVE

The Veterans Administration is requiring therapists to return to the office full time, but does not have enough space for them

As a result, they are forced to provide mental health counseling to veterans in open cubicles

It is an unethical and likely illegal practice

2. In an internal chat among clinical resource hub staff obtained by Popular Information, one therapist reported they were "relocated to a VA call-center cubicle space."

According to the therapist, "VA staff around my cubicle can hear my sessions."

popular.info/p/veterans-adm…

3. The therapist said they were "worried about issues of licensure [and] ethics code violations related to confidentiality."

Another therapist reported that they are being told by leadership that "screen protectors, a white noise machine, and a headset is sufficient to ensure patient privacy in a large bullpen of cubicles." The therapist was skeptical and reported that "these items are not always available."

Read 6 tweets

Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 5

1. Trump is pushing forward with his plans to create a "Crypto Strategic Reserve."

No one has bothered to explain why diverting government resources into crypto has ANY STRATEGIC BENEFIT FOR THE UNITED STATES.

The only benefit is for people who are current investors in crypto.

It's a grift.

🧵

2. Trump expanded on his plans in on Truth Social on Sunday.

He specified that the "Crypto Strategic Reserve" would not only contain well-known tokens like Bitcoin and Ethereum, but also newer entrants like XRP, Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA).

(Ed note: Who is actually writing these posts??)

3. A strategic oil reserve is beneficial in the event of a disruption to the oil supply.

When would a reserve of cryptocurrency be useful, exactly?

Anyone?

Bueller?

popular.info/p/strategic-co…

Read 8 tweets

Judd Legum

@JuddLegum

Mar 4

1. EXCLUSIVE

Popular Information has obtained an email, sent yesterday by a Trump administration official, explicitly instructing CFPB employees not to carry out activities REQUIRED BY LAW

This directly contradicts what administration lawyers told a federal court

Read it:

2. The Monday email instructs members of the CFPB supervision staff that they are not authorized to resume "supervision/examination activity, even though the Bureau is required by law to carry out these activities."

popular.info/p/email-shows-…

3. Huggins' email is related to a legal battle between the Trump administration and CFPB employees that started in earnest on February 7, when President Trump named Russell Vought as the acting head of the CFPB.

Vought was one of the principal authors of Project 2025, which called for abolishing the CFPB. On February 10 Vought informed CFPB staff that the office was closed and "employees should stand down from performing any work task."

Soon after almost all CFPB employees were placed on administrative leave

Read 7 tweets

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