(WGN) — President Donald Trump’s efforts to slash and burn parts of the federal government failed to produce, let alone prove, the billions in savings it claimed.
Those are the findings of a new report from the Government Accountability Office, and they mirror some of WGN Investigates’ reporting more than a year ago.
The Department of Government Efficiency — also known by its acronym: DOGE — was big on drama, but not details. Congress’ non-partisan audit agency now concludes there’s little evidence to support the $110 billion in savings claimed by Elon Musk and Trump.
“Elon’s doing a really good job,” President Trump said in 2025.
A recently released report said, “DOGE did not use its stated methodology to calculate the majority of savings associated with the contracts reported as terminated. For grants, DOGE did not provide sufficient information to verify the method used to calculate 96 percent of DOGE-reported savings.”
In the spring of 2025, WGN Investigates reported on DOGE’s claim that it saved $6.4 million by terminating property leases in the Chicago area, but we found some were leases already set to expire, including one in Hoffman Estates where the National Archives temporarily housed items for the Obama Presidential Center.
In fact, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found 40% of DOGE’s claimed savings were from leases previously terminated.
But, to be clear, there were real cuts with real impact.
“The days of kicking the can down the road and measuring the VA’s success by how much money it spends and how many people it employs rather than how many people it helps are over,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said.
In Chicago, veteran outreach programs were cut and VA staffing was reduced. Environmental Protection Agency jobs were also reduced. Even the Brookfield Zoo had to make cuts after federal grant money was rescinded.
Overall, the audit found DOGE claimed billions in savings that either didn’t happen or couldn’t be verified.
While DOGE has been shut down, many Republicans — including candidate for governor Darren Bailey and his running mate, Aaron Del Mar — hold it up as an example of what should be tried in Illinois.
“This is not, ‘Let’s go in there with a chainsaw.’ Let’s go in with an Exacto knife, with precision, and find ways that we can increase our functionality and streamline government efficiency and services,” Del Mar said.
DOGE’s website claims every American taxpayer saved $1,300 because of the chainsaw they took to government.
The GAO found that claim also wasn’t supported by evidence.
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