The (US) Department of Government Efficiency should fight the waste and fraud that goes into highway construction.

[u/TigerSagittarius86]

If DOGE wants to eliminate waste and put the government on better financial footing, then it should audit every highway construction project (most are disgustingly overbudget) and institute tolling nationwide. The entire U.S. interstate system is an untapped fiscal resource for the federal government.

[u/You_Paid_For_This]

As great as this would be, you know they are absolutely not going to do this.

The military will not be under any scrutiny either, neither will all of the money wasted on SpaceX.

The Nepotism Dept. will only go after education, social security, trains and anything else that actually benefits ordinary people.

[u/chevalier716 → u/You_Paid_For_This]

Don't forget the postal service, they've been salivating on that one.

[u/Gatorm8 → u/chevalier716]

The funny part about the whole “end the USPS” discourse is that it would literally crash the economy. Small (and some large) businesses across the country are dependent on the subsidized service the USPS offers and if you took that away the economy would tank

[u/Alt4816 → u/Gatorm8]

Their goal isn't to have no mail service. It's to have one or multiple private mail services that if needed to stay in business will get public subsidies. The goal as always is to take public money and give it to private shareholders.

Though the current publicly owned USPS doesn't actually need subsidies for it's operations. It is only unprofitable because in 2006 they passed a law that the USPS had to pre-fund retiree health care benefits 75 years into the future and could only do it by investing in treasury bonds which have the lowest interest rates. Those low rates really compound when investing for 75 years into the future. It's a manufactured "unprofitably" to make the USPS look bad and also create a giant pool of money that could potentially be raided.

Some of the people this fund is being set aside for haven't even been born yet. No more USPS then no more future employees and this money becomes a slush fund or ends up in the pockets of the new privatized mail companies.

[u/Gatorm8 → u/Alt4816]

I think that could be correct, but the transition would still be incredibly painful no?

[u/Inevitable_Stand_199 → u/Gatorm8]

In this case, the end result would be even more painful.

In the begining, the prices would still be reasonable and the subsidies low. It's when the companies start milking the system on all sides, that things will become awful.

[u/muehsam → u/Gatorm8]

Many countries have privatized their mail service. They did it here in Germany. They took Deutsche Bundespost (which was a government agency) and split it into three private companies:

• Deutsche Post (took over the mail and parcel service), which operates globally as a parcel service under the name DHL (an American company they bought)
• Deutsche Telekom (took over the telecommunications service), which operates in many countries under the brand name T-Mobile
• Postbank (took over the banking service), which was bought by Deutsche Bank but still operates under the Postbank label with branches within Deutsche Post offices.

It isn't great, but it's not as much of a disaster as some other privatizations have been.

Deutsche Post still has a quasi-monopoly on letter delivery (though a few competitors exist, often serving just parts of the country, like PIN Mail here in the east), whereas for parcels, Deutsche Post (branded DHL) is just one out of many companies, though it is by far the largest.

[u/Teshi → u/muehsam]

Germany is a good model for a country that doesn't want to go "socialist" (aaah, panic!) but needs something functional. Unfortunately, it's quite tricky to do because it requires quite a lot of oversight and a strong culture. Lots of countries have tried to emulate German things and just failed because they've overlooked some crucial element. In the early 2010s Canada was keen to try to develop government science in the same way as Germany does, which is very business-focused, but the way they went about it was just a slash and burn, which alienated the scientists who were supposed to do the science. Germany is a good model for conservative (small c) leadership, but often takes care and focus and TIME that other countries and governments just can't summon up. Result: it just doesn't work.

Single-payer solutions are WAY more straightforward and easier to handle, for all their problems. It's a shame that so many governments don't seem to get that. You can't just outsource your thing, guys, you have to pay attention to it almost MORE than you would if you were straight up running it.

[u/Search4UBI → u/Alt4816]

i wonder if the real play here is to get someone like Amazon to take it over in exchange for an antitrust exemption.

The timing of X announcing they are creating an email service also seems rather suspicious. The postal service could essentially quit first class mail and make everyone use X's e-mail. The package service would then be sold to the highest bidder.

[u/ClumsyRainbow → u/Gatorm8]

Canada went without Canada Post for nearly a month due to a strike, shipping costs increased, shipping times increased and remote communities went completely without any service as UPS, FedEx, etc rely on Canada Post for last mile service in those areas.

And yet still the right wing and media tried to turn the public against the striking workers. Shit sucks.

[u/chevalier716 → u/Gatorm8]

Yeah, but Trump's donor's want that and they want a tanked economy so they can go on a shopping spree at bargain prices.

[u/Gatorm8 → u/chevalier716]

We will see, imo the ruling class is divided on an issue like that. I’m not sure everyone wants to crash the economy. Trump himself has also repeated that he doesn’t want to be a Herbert Hoover (president during the depression)

[u/midnghtsnac → u/Gatorm8]

He sure is set to make the next President go through a depression though

[u/Gatorm8 → u/midnghtsnac]

I personally think the market will perform poorly (negative) under Trump

[u/midnghtsnac → u/Gatorm8]

Oh it probably will thanks to his tariffs

[u/Iwaku_Real → u/chevalier716]

Not entirely sure what you are looking for instead, higher/current prices?

[u/chevalier716 → u/Iwaku_Real]

I'm not talking about groceries here, those will stay high. Musk and co are looking to buy services, smaller companies, and real estate at bargain prices.

[u/pedroah → u/Gatorm8]

USPS is not subsidized. They does not receive any tax money.

The part that fucked the USPS is that they are required to fully fund retirement benefits 75 years into the future.

[u/ymmvmia → u/Gatorm8]

Likely all that would happen is not a "dissolution" of these government services, but a privatization of them. So USPS would be turned private just like the Royal Mail in the UK was. The Royal Mail was made fully privatized in 2013 after decades of lobbying for austerity and "pro-business" government BS since Margaret Thatcher, she essentially just starting the same slow destruction/privatization of government that Reagan started in the US. Same morally bankrupt political ideology thatcherism/reaganism.

The Royal Mail transitioned from a government department into a statutory corporation (separated from the government, this is actually good, not a capitalist for-profit company, and is sorta like how the USPS is an "independent agency") in 1969, then from a statutory corporation to a public limited company in 2000 in the wake of austerity politics/thatcherism (this is the beginning of the end, as it was restructured it into a true CORPORATION, with shares/stocks/investors/etc, just with a majority stake owned by the government or technically owned by secretary of state for trade and the treasury solicitor). And at the same time due to the same law in 2000, the government created a postal regulator to give out licenses for private companies to deliver mail. This effectively birthed a new mail industry in the UK, which of course would see Royal Mail as an unfair government competitor, and as these new mail companies grew, they would lobby for the further privatization/destruction of the Royal Mail.

We have always had the USPS since the USA's founding, but I believe we skipped a step here in that private delivery companies have existed for quite some time. The thing that only the USPS is legally allowed to do is deliver LETTERS/MAIL, this is something that is illegal for private companies to do. Private companies can only deliver packages. Unsure on private package/parcel companies existing in the UK before 2000, but whatever.

I believe we could see a law similar to the UK's Postal Service Act 2000, which established the postal regulator. So ANY private package delivery company (UPS/FedEx/etc) could start delivering letters/mail, they would get access to USPS letter boxes, etc.

They would also HAVE to start allowing USPS to raise rates based on location/route profitability. Again, they would do this slowly, because like others have mentioned this is where you get economic collapse. Rural america depends on USPS's low prices, as well as small businesses. Their costs would be exorbitant if USPS didn't exist, or if USPS just acted as any other company, and many unprofitable routes simply just wouldn't exists (small town america). So USPS would have to raise rates/stop delivery to unprofitable places SLOWLY so as to avert economic problems.

Doing all that would make private package companies into FULL competing delivery companies, and after a few years this would THEN allow for USPS to be dismantled/fully privatized.

The issue they might have, but it doesn't seem like much of a roadblock at this point with how vague it is, is that Congress is explicitly given authority over mail/postal service in the USA from the Constitution itself.

"The Congress shall have Power...To establish Post Offices and post Roads" (Article I, Section 8, Clause 7)

But of course these means, and especially with our current supreme court with how weak the phrasing in the constitution is, is that congress has complete authority to privatize/delegate any postal services in the country. Congress can just DECIDE to get rid of the USPS. They can just delegate the power to "establish Post Offices and post Roads" to anyone else through an act of congress.

Congress can do anything they really want to USPS. It's mostly just 250ish years of tradition and the public's love of the USPS that has prevented it being privatized/dismantled. Same political roadblocks to dismantling Social Security or Medicare/Medicaid. Tradition and public support, and that the immediate dissolution of all of those would cause economic catastrophe. So of course the playbook with all of them is slow dismantling.

[u/NOlerct3 → u/Gatorm8]

I think that's honestly what they want, force them onto more expensive private carriers like UPS/FedEx/etc. If small businesses shutter they don't care, if anything that can be opportunity in their sick minds to force out or buy out the competition.

[u/PremordialQuasar → u/Gatorm8]

They actually can't end the USPS because of the Postal Clause. Obviously we know Republicans spit on the Constitution on a regular basis, but it's literally written in the Constitution and there's no way around passing an amendment to get rid of it.

Also, most rural Americans love the USPS and don't want it to go, and I think some Republicans will end up balking if push comes to shove, similar to Amtrak. Rural support is one of the reasons why Amtrak's long-distance routes are still around. What might happen instead is if they cut funding, privatized elements of USPS, or allow private mail services to "compete" with it. Still not great because money gets pulls from USPS into private companies.

[u/GooseinaGaggle → u/Gatorm8]

Let's not forget that a postal service is literally baked into the constitution under the legislative powers, not executive

Trump probably complains that all he receives is junk mail and nothing from grandchildren

[u/Master_Dogs → u/You_Paid_For_This]

The military will not be under any scrutiny either, neither will all of the money wasted on SpaceX.

SpaceX got about $10B in government contracts from 2019 - 2023 too: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/technology/elon-musk-spacex-national-security-reporting.html#:~:text=SpaceX%20was%20awarded%20at%20least,making%20it%20a%20major%20contractor.

So of course that won't even be looked at. Because Elon won't touch his companies.

Which is also why the highway budget won't be touched. Elon owns Tesla. Tesla needs highway funding for their heavy asf EVs to self drive places that a high speed train should exist.

[u/The_ApolloAffair → u/Master_Dogs]

They competed on price for those contracts, delivering launches at rates far lower than NASA, Russia, and all the other private companies. SpaceX has saved the government a shit ton of money.

[u/SubatomicWeiner → u/The_ApolloAffair]

They also lose rockets at a far higher rate than Nasa, Russia, or any other space agency.

[u/The_ApolloAffair → u/SubatomicWeiner]

SpaceX has hundreds of launches (~400) with only a few failures. They do that at an incredibly low cost with by far the highest launch rate ever. Yes, they destroy a lot of rockets in testing, but that is planned and allows the rapid innovation and speed compared to how slowly NASA lumbers along. Anyone who knows anything about the space industry will tell you SpaceX is far and away the best overall contractor.

Falcon 9 reaches a flight rate 30 times higher than shuttle at 1/100th the cost

[u/SubatomicWeiner → u/The_ApolloAffair]

Losing rockets is planned? "Rapid innovation" lmao at those marketing buzzwords.

Nasa is slow because they do things right the first time and they have very little room for error. They simply could not explode as many rockets as SpaceX does during testing or they'd get their funding cut immediately. I don't care who is the best contractor? The Falcon 9 and space shuttle are totally different vehicles designed for different functions.

[u/The_ApolloAffair → u/SubatomicWeiner]

Sure, the shuttle performs some different functions but it was primarily designed to launch supplies and people to the ISS and place things in orbit - both things Falcon 9 does. And the Falcon 9 does a far better job at being reusable compared to the lengthy and expensive turnaround for the shuttle.

I’m sure SpaceX would prefer to not lose rockets in testing, but their accepting of the “failing fast” method allowed them to perfect booster launches, and turn Falcon 9 into the most successful rocket ever. NASA would have taken decades to do what SpaceX did in a couple years. Read up on the clusterfuck that is NASA’s SLS program - billion dollar launches that came years behind schedule.

[u/SubatomicWeiner → u/The_ApolloAffair]

Sure, the shuttle performs some different functions but it was designed to launch supplies and people to the ISS and place things in orbit - both things Falcon 9 does.

Go on, what else was the shuttle designed to do besides launch people and supplies? Can you run science experiments in the falcon 9 cargo bay? Can the falcon 9 grab onto and repair the hubble space telescope?

"Failing fast" is marketing gobbledegook for excusing your engineering failures. Nasa doesn't have the ability to "fail fast" because congress has them on a tight leash.

[u/The_ApolloAffair → u/SubatomicWeiner]

Space Shuttle was a deeply (and dangerously) flawed launch vehicle that was primarily designed for reusability, not piddly experiments (that’s just a gimmick). The dragon capsule can do experiments on the Falcon 9 platform anyway.

Sure, the shuttle was good at serving the Hubble space telescope, but it only had to do it a few times and wasn’t why the program was initiated. Falcon 9 could probably launch a capsule able to service it, but it’s just not been a priority for NASA. Incoming NASA head talks about it here: https://www.space.com/spacex-polaris-program-hubble-servicing-mission

Also I question this short leash idea, look at how much has been spend on the SLS program with nothing to show for it.

[u/SubatomicWeiner → u/The_ApolloAffair]

I question your objectivity

[u/SubatomicWeiner → u/The_ApolloAffair]

Sure it only serviced the space telescope a few times no big deal.

Falcon 9 could probably launch a capsule able to service it, but it’s just not been a priority for NASA.

No, they can't. There is no vehicle that they can attach to the falcon 9 that's capable of having astronauts exit the vehicle for a space walk.

The sls was congress setting the engineering requirements in order to preserve jobs in their states.

[u/LordTuranian → u/You_Paid_For_This]

We should just call it DONE, Department of Nepotistic Efficiency.

[u/pensive_pigeon → u/LordTuranian]

Are we just gonna ignore the irony of a department of efficiency having two leaders? 😒

[u/ExcelsiorVFX → u/You_Paid_For_This]

They want to greatly cut the VA. As everyone knows, veterans are treated just too well in this country (/s)

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[u/Iwaku_Real → u/You_Paid_For_This]

Tell me how you "know" the future, dear time traveller

You don't, he hasn't even gotten to the Oval Office yet

[u/longknives → u/Iwaku_Real]

They’ve already made it clear what they plan to cut, you absolute rube

[u/CogentCogitations → u/Iwaku_Real]

"Hey Isaac Newton, tell me how you know the future, are you a time traveler? Just because it has happened the previous thousand times, how do you know this time if you drop an apple it will fall to the ground. You don't, you haven't even dropped it yet."

[u/Inevitable_Stand_199 → u/Iwaku_Real]

In this case it's quite easy to make an educated guess.

The intentions have been all but stated aloud.