Sen. Ernst Sends Cost Cut Recommendations to DOGE

On Monday, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, sent a letter to the co-chairs of the Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, listing a number of government programs they could cut to save the taxpayers' money.

"While you're seeking 'super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries' for 'unglamorous cost-cutting,' all that's really needed is a little common sense. If you can't find waste in Washington, there can only be one reason: you didn't look. With $3 billion of interest being added to our national debt every day, the longer we delay tackling the problem, the further away the finish line gets," Ernst, who will lead the Senate's DOGE caucus, wrote.

From there, the Iowa congresswoman listed 22 areas DOGE could focus on to eliminate government wasteful spending:

The topics included:

Vacant Buildings: The government paying for unused buildings, costing around $8 billion a year.
Audit the IRS: Roughly 5,800 IRS employers or contractors owe almost $50 million.
Biden's Billion Dollar Boondoggles: $7.5 billion was allocated in Biden's infrastructure program to build EV charging stations. So far, 17 have been built in the last three years. Meanwhile, hundreds of billions of COVID-relief funds have been sent to fraudsters.
Golden State Gravy Trains Taking Taxpayers for a Ride: "The California High-Speed Train is costing about $1.8 million a day to build and won't be completed for another decade."
Christmas in September: Calls out Congress' spending in September left over from the fiscal year. Of the $53 billion spent in a single week, purchases included "$4.6 million of lobster tail and crab, and $2.1 million for games and toys, including nearly $12,000 for a Foosball table."
Welfare for Politicians: A program called the Presidential Election Campaign Fund gives money anywhere from hundreds of thousands of dollars to a million to failed candidates who ran for president.
Bad Pennies: Though not mentioned by Ernst explicitly, this appears to be a hard money issue. The Treasury Department spends more money making coins than they're worth.
Trillion Dollar Secret Slush Funds: Washington has "trillions of dollars stashed away in secret slush funds" yet couldn't pay to help out veterans in need.
Bogus Bonuses: Government employees or contractors get paid bonuses for poor performance.
Silly Science: The government funds studies such as: How fast can a shrimp run on a treadmill? And does a potato chip look like Elvis?
Unemployment for Millionaires: Unemployment payments are being paid out to millionaires.
Government Swag: Government agencies spend tax dollars on "koozies, key chains, coloring books," and "snuggies" for public relations and lobbying.
Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining: Consolidating cloud computing to a single software designate could save the government $750 million a year.
China's Mad Scientists: Dr. Anthony Fauci sent taxpayer dollars to fund the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Millions of dollars were also sent to other Chinese institutions.
United Nations Overpayments: The U.N. charges the United States higher membership dues than any other country.
Defenseless Spending: The Pentagon has never passed an audit. Meanwhile, a soap dispenser got an 8,000% markup, and a coffee cup cost $1,220.
Remove Ineligible Recipients of Federal Employees Health Benefits: "The Federal Employees Health Benefits program is spending almost $1 billion a year paying the bills of individuals who aren't even eligible for the coverage."
Paid to Do Nothing: Dozens of Department of Energy employees get paid while they take naps and play dominoes and chess.
Stop Giving Away the Farm: The U.S. Department of Agriculture pays for studies on pigeons playing video games and "cricket farms."
Snap Back Inaccurate SNAP Payments: "Nearly $1 billion of ineligible Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits are being paid every month."
Reducing Duplication and Improving Performance: The Government Accountability Office has already earmarked $200 billion worth of programs to be cut.
Require Common Sense Project Management Principles: "For every $1 billion Washington spends, $102 million is wasted as projects go over budget, are delayed, or fail to meet projected goals."