The DOGE Boys

I think they're going to have their problems

Just because I need to get this off my chest: one of the primary goals of the incoming fascist regime is the end of DEI, because they want an all-white fundamentalist Christian nation.

Elmo is African-American. Vivek is Indian, and a Hindu.

Just sayin’.

These are the boys that the Orange Menace has chosen to revamp the Federal Government.

I’ve read a bunch of articles on what their plan is, but the best summary comes from Brian Allen, a banker and writer. He summarized it this way:

1. Plant DOGE loyalists in every U.S. agency, then use "advanced technology" (probably AI) to identify "thousands" of regulations to slash across the board.

2. Hand Trump this hit list of regulations and let him rubber-stamp their elimination. No checks, no balances—just chaos.

3. Gut federal agencies by finding "the minimum number of employees" needed to function after gutting regulations. Think Musk’s 80% staff cuts at X but scaled up to the entire government.

4. Lay off federal workers en masse with vague promises of "severance packages" and "early retirement incentives" that have no actual details.

5. Axe programs Congress hasn’t reauthorized, like VA health care, NASA, and anti-poverty initiatives — critical services millions rely on.

6. Pause federal payments for "large-scale audits," with zero clarity on what that even means. Translation: destabilize everything from Social Security to defense spending.

7. Invoke presidential authority to block spending without Congressional approval, openly defying the 1974 budget law on impoundments.

Brian points out that if the DOGE boys could pull this off, it would lead to the collapse of the US Government, and complete anarchy. He’s correct. And if they find a way to circumvent the courts, the House and Senate, and the American public, they will be able to pull it off.

BUT.

I don’t think they can pull it off, because implementation is a Rube Goldberg cartoon¹. In addition, I believe that there are some remaining guardrails, and they will hold.

Let’s look at some of the things that the DOGE boys want to do and point out JUST A FEW of the inherent problems.

Government Regulations

A US Federal Regulation is a Federal Agency interpretation for the implementation of a bill a passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. During this process, it’s published in the Federal Register, and public input is allowed. While a few are simple, most are complex.

So first, these jokers will have to read and understand the regulations.

Let’s say they find one they want to extinguish. Before they can do that, they have to contend with the Administrative Procedure Act, as adjudicated by SCOTUS earlier this year in Loper Bright Enterprises et al. v. Raimondo, Secretary of Commerce, et al. This overruled the Chevron Doctrine.

In English, it means that a court needs to decide whether what the Federal Agency is doing is kosher, albeit ONLY IN CASES where the law is ambiguous². In case you’re wondering, if a law is unambiguous, interpretation of a regulation can still end up in court.

I’m thinking this won’t be a quick process. Various members of Congress, and their constituents have a lot invested in a lot of the regs they’ll want to throw out.

Staffing Cuts

Government workers are, for the most part, unionized. It’s not that easy to fire a federal employee except for something like gross negligence, and even so, due process is required.

Let’s take the Department of Justice (DoJ). All political appointees normally offer letters of resignation when there is a new administration, and we will likely be saying goodbye to a number of capable, decent, dedicated public servants. But there are between 9,000 and 10,000 civil service attorneys at the DoJ, and they are not required to offer letters of resignation³.

As for firing them, the Orange Menace issued a ridiculous “Schedule F” EO which never went into effect because that gang can’t shoot straight, and President Biden immediately rescinded it upon taking office. But then, earlier this year, the Biden Administration promulgated a Final Federal Regulation that protects Civil Servants from Schedule F. You can read it here, and you should take a look, because most people don’t spend time reading the Federal Register, looking at rules, regulations and laws. Just take a look and see how long it is, how well written and sourced, and then realize based on Loper Bright - it might well end up in court. Wait! Pardon me. “Might well end up in court???” THESE PEOPLE ARE LAWYERS. But even before that, it’s illegal to issue an EO to overrule a Final Federal Regulation, and therefore they’ll need to write a new regulation, and that will take a while. Full process here.

Now, they can try to issue an Interim Federal Regulation, and that will immediately be challenged in court by the affected unions, an injunction will be issued, and the slow wheels of justice will start turning. Eventually, it’s possible that some judge (think Loose Cannon) could rule in favor of the regime - but there would certainly be appeals all the way to SCOTUS, where it will run up against the major questions doctrine.

The Supreme Court’s recent decision in West Virginia v. EPA, 142 S. Ct. 2587 (2022), announced the arrival of the major questions doctrine, a substantive canon of construction that bars agencies from resolving questions of “vast economic and political significance” without clear statutory authorization.

Yeah, it’s murky. Interpretation. In answer to the question: “Jessica, why do you keep linking to all of this minutiae related to how government works, along with the court cases?”

I am well aware that most people are nowhere near as nerdy as I am relative to the inner workings of government and court case outcomes. However, if you want to be in a position to understand the guardrails, how to know whether to sue (with standing), when to contact which government officials, you need to understand the details. At least understand the terms: the more people who understand, the less the DOGE boys will be able to circumvent the process. Further, I’m a great believer that while people are entitled to their own opinions, they are not entitled to their own “facts” - and so I endeavor to use source citations wherever possible.

One other thing about DoJ. The last time a criminal tried to run roughshod over DoJ was back when Tricky Dick appointed L. Patrick Gray as acting director of the FBI (part of DoJ) in 1972, six weeks before the Watergate break-in. I’m going to spare you all the details, but here are a few salient ones:

• Gray was eventually indicted for having burned documents from Haldeman and Erlichman in his home fireplace. He was never convicted.

• He was such a poor leader that there was a lot of information about Watergate that flowed via the internal grapevine up to Gray, who was a collaborator.

• A lot of that information flowed past Gray’s second in command, who had day-to-day operational control of the FBI during that time because Gray was so corrupt and inept.

• Gray’s second in command was a man named Mark Felt. You probably know him by his nom de plume: Deep Throat.

I provide you this little bit of history so that you understand that DoJ (and the FBI) are for the most part righteous organizations, filled with smart, dedicated people. Then and now.

Congressional Reaction

I could go on, but I think you’ve gotten the idea of what the DOGE boys are up against. Things will end up in court, but there is also the wild card of what the collaborators in Congress will or will not do.

For example, they could push through a new Final Schedule F Regulation in about 7 months if they worked quickly and efficiently.

Unlikely⁴.

In addition, the DOGE boys want to cut Veteran’s healthcare benefits, if not do away with them. You may have read about the Bonus Army in 1932: Vets who wanted the bonuses promised them for their WW1 service. It was an ugly situation, and Hoover didn’t handle it well. Some contend it contributed to his loss to FDR later that year. Media in 1932 was not what it is now, and there would be huge public blowback nationwide if veterans were in camps in DC demanding their benefits, live streamed.

But the real question is how fearful Congressmen and women, and Senators are of the fascist regime. I plan a separate post on this.

Just for my own curiosity:

1. Yes, I talk about implementation all the time, because it’s something that matters.

2. Because of the packing of amendments onto various laws, and the structuring of the laws themselves, there is always something ambiguous in there.

3. Rumor has it that many lawyers, at DoJ and other Agencies have been shopping their resumes to prominent law firms. Can’t blame them for wanting to avoid serving fascists - but then they will be available to represent those who choose to stay.

4. For this to happen, first, Moscow Mike Johnson would have to hold his one seat majority together. Then, he’d need consensus in committee. When it comes for a vote, not one Rethuglican could be out sick, drunk, or just in a pissy mood deciding to be difficult. In addition, individual members of the chaos caucus would have to deal with constituent blowback because firing all those people mean there’s no one to print Social Security checks, man FAA towers, inspect food, and all the other things all of us depend upon. Members of the House want to get re-elected, and that won’t happen if there are no humans to do the actual work of government.