Former Democratic Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips slammed his own party Tuesday on Newsmax for not “prioritizing efficiency for the American taxpayers.”
During an appearance on “Rob Schmitt Tonight,” Phillips said he has long advocated for more efficiency in government spending. He urged his Democratic colleagues to implement private sector disciplines into the public sector.
“I’ve been trying to convince my Democratic colleagues for years that we should prioritize efficiency, good value for American taxpayers, and ensure our federal government operates more effectively,” Phillips said. “And that means injecting some private sector disciplines into a system, into a public sector system that really needs it, and who is more proficient at efficiency than Elon Musk? But he comes with some baggage, as we all know.”
Phillips criticized the resistance within his party against the notion of efficiency.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate for any American political party to object to the notion of efficiency. That’s why I am encouraging my colleagues to at least consider participating, because then Democrats would have more credibility to protect some of the programs that I think are worthy of it,” Phillips said.
He said government programs such as USAID are important, but not as effective as they could be.
“I think USAID, if you look really carefully at it, and a lot of my Republican colleagues agree, it is the most inexpensive, humane arsenal in our national defense toolbox that helps build the American brand,” Phillips said. “Is it as efficient, effective as we would want? No. But I don’t think we should do wholesale elimination of entire agencies without some transparency, without some conversation. So I think there’s a nuance here. I’m trying to convince both sides to reach that conclusion.”
Since Elon Musk and members of his Department of Government Efficiency team announced their plans to downsize the U.S. Agency for International Development, Democrats have resisted their involvement. Criticism intensified after Musk shared a chart on X Sunday night that displayed ages in the Social Security database ranging from ages zero to 369 years old.
Last Thursday, 14 Democratic state attorneys general initiated a lawsuit against Musk, saying that his participation in the federal government contravenes the Constitution’s Appointments Clause, which mandates Senate confirmation for such presidential appointments. Judge Tanya Chutkan said that the attorneys general presented a plausible claim regarding the Appointments Clause, but she limited her judgment to the issue of irreparable harm and denied the request to block Musk’s actions.
Featured Image Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America
