Trump’s spending war begins, but the swamp won’t go quietly

The Department of Government Efficiency launched aggressive efforts to rein in federal bureaucracy. But limited-government conservatives should not assume fiscal responsibility is within reach.

The reality of America’s financial situation remains dire. In fiscal 2024, the federal government spent $6.8 trillion but collected only $4.9 trillion in taxes. That left a deficit of $1.9 trillion, pushing the national debt to $35.5 trillion by year’s end.

How did our constitutional republic end up in this mess?

To balance the budget, the DOGE must eliminate nearly $2 trillion in annual spending. Until then, the national debt will continue to rise.

So far, the Trump administration’s crackdown on waste, fraud, and abuse has saved about $100 billion. But that’s a fraction of what’s needed, and the challenge ahead remains enormous.

The executive orders and DOGE actions are weak by nature and not built to last. Without legislative backing, they can be reversed by the next administration. Meanwhile, entrenched bureaucrats will resist implementation, requiring strict enforcement from the administration.

Legal challenges are already moving through the courts, and civil service regulations will be used to slow progress. The left-leaning media, still reeling from Trump’s early moves, is preparing for a full-scale counteroffensive of disinformation and manufactured outrage. As temperatures rise across the country, expect the media’s rhetoric to heat up, fueling protests that will likely lead to violence and destruction.

When that happens, Republican legislators will waver, as they always do. As spending battles unfold — through continuing resolutions, omnibus bills, debt-ceiling fights, or an elusive budget proposal — uniparty politicians will band together to protect the bureaucratic status quo.

They will do so for three reasons. First, many are entrenched in the system and benefit from it — they’re swamp-dwellers. Second, Republicans hold only a narrow majority in both chambers of Congress, and those facing re-election in battleground districts will avoid controversial legislation. Third, Democrats could retake the House or Senate in the midterms, eliminating any appetite for shrinking the federal bureaucracy.

Even if lawmakers find the will to act, another major obstacle remains: entitlement spending. Congress has already approved massive and popular programs like Social Security and Medicare. As more Baby Boomers retire, these programs will automatically cost more. Social Security has been paying out more than it collects in taxes since 2010, depleting its trust fund. Worse, the federal government borrowed $1.7 trillion from that trust fund to cover other expenses. This means the DOGE must not only cut $2 trillion annually to balance the budget but also figure out how to repay that $1.7 trillion while continuing to fund retiree benefits.

A larger crisis looms. The federal government spent $900 billion on interest payments in fiscal year 2024, making it the second-largest budget item after Social Security. As the national debt grows and interest rates rise, interest payments will soon surpass Social Security costs. With a $40 trillion debt and 5% interest rates, annual interest payments could hit $2 trillion — another financial mountain for the DOGE to climb.

How did our constitutional republic end up in this mess?

The problem lies in the legislative branch’s unchecked ability to expand the bureaucracy and increase spending. The only real restraint is the willingness of voters to hold lawmakers accountable at the ballot box. But that never happens. Power shifts between parties, yet the federal government keeps growing, no matter who is in charge.

At some point, the American people must summon the political will to amend the Constitution and impose limits on the legislature. Potential safeguards include capping government spending (for example, limiting current-year spending to 10% of the prior year’s GDP), imposing term limits to reduce the influence of lobbyists, requiring single-issue bills to prevent pork-barrel spending, granting the president a line-item veto, and mandating a balanced budget.

America’s founders miscalculated. They never envisioned that a nation that fought a revolution against government overreach would allow another oppressive system to take its place. They could not have imagined that a country built by rugged individualists — who produced the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution — would become a society captivated by collectivist ideologies.

The DOGE’s initial efforts are a promising start, but they are not enough. The fight for fiscal sanity will span multiple administrations and possibly generations. Limited-government conservatives must prepare for a long battle. The DOGE is just the first step on a much longer journey.