There’s nothing like waking up to the news these days to find out that yet another horrible thing has happened under the radar while we were busy worrying about all of the other dreadful things.
Last week, with no notice or fanfare, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum signed over his agency to the so-called Department of Government Efficiency—the latest step in DOGE’s takeover of the federal government.
Burgum is probably best known for his lackluster presidential bid that involved literally bribing people with gift cards so he could qualify for the first GOP primary debate. After that flamed out, he became a big supporter of Donald Trump’s and was ostensibly on the shortlist for vice president. Of course, that was never actually going to happen because Burgum doesn’t have the viciousness required of Trump’s VP.
Instead, Burgum settled for the Department of the Interior, which was supposedly a good fit because he’s outdoorsy. He’s also stupendously richwhich also seems to be a qualification for Trump’s inner circle. But Burgum wasn’t really all that interested in leading the department, given that he just handed over the reins to Dogen Staffer Tyler Hassen.
Hate is now able to issue policy directives, make funding decisions, and transfer funds. He’s also in charge of the “consolidation” of technology, communications, financial management, contracting, and human resources—thinly veiled code for “trash the divisions and fire everyone.” Hassan is also reviewing every grant over $50,000 with fellow DOGE denizen Matt Lubywho requested access to the department’s grant system.
You might be wondering who the hell Hassen is, and that’s not an unusual reaction. He hasn’t been one of the high-profile DOGE types like the racist one or the one who leaked sensitive information. But that doesn’t mean he’s not dangerous.
Hassen has no government background, but he does have a long career as an oil executive. Under Trump, the Department of the Interior is shifting from protecting the environment to giving away public lands to oil and gas companies for drilling. And for that, Hassen is perfect.
It’s an interesting move for a party that insisted for decades that the real problem with the federal government was the meddling of unelected bureaucrats. Elect a populist like Trump, they said, because he’s accountable to voters and so transparent! Cabinet secretaries will be confirmed by the Senate, giving the people a say!
Yeah, about that.
Hassen was never confirmed by the Senate, but now he’s in charge of a federal agency while still working for DOGE, which isn’t an official government entity. It’s the very definition of an unelected, unaccountable bureaucrat.
Hilariously, the Trump administration says that Hassen’s new role with the Department of the Interior will ensure that “Trump’s executive order to restore accountability to the American public is carried out.”
Because nothing says “accountability” like shoving aside the Senate-confirmed secretary for some dude who no one has ever heard of with values that run exactly counter to the conservation mission of the agency.
Of course, this isn’t the first agency that has voluntarily abdicated core responsibilities by handing them over to DOGE. Still, Burgum has been unusually deferential to DOGE, even by the standards of an administration that has routinely bent the knee.
In February, Burgum appeared on Fox News, gushing that his agency was “completely embracing the DOGE effort. Part of what DOGE is bringing is awareness to the public, to the people that are in our country.”
Well, that’s true. But probably not in the way Burgum meant it.
We certainly are much more aware of things thanks to DOGE, but that’s because they are uniformly horrible.
When former U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy happily announced an alliance with DOGE, 10,000 jobs were cut. Over at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth praised DOGE for finding “waste,” which resulted in axing $580 million of contracts, programs, and grants. And NASA jumped to fire people and shutter three divisions simply because DOGE said so.
Elon Musk has recently been making noise about stepping back from his role at DOGE. Who knows if that will actually happen, though he will hit the 130-day limit for special government employees next month. But even if Musk leaves, he will have installed his loyalists everywhere, with DOGE having burrowed into nearly every government agency.
It’s a shadow presidency that no longer really requires Musk. And it’s a shadow presidency that utterly obscures the workings of government.
Whatever this is, it’s definitely not accountability.
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