There are two good, big feature pieces out from the Times and the Journal this morning about the origins and rampage of DOGE. They don’t break a lot of new news, but they both bring the overall story together in compelling and new ways. And they do add some important details, especially how far back the planning for DOGE went and how Musk and associated techies were recruiting far-right stool pigeons and would-be accomplices among mid-level employees at various agencies who could be elevated to taking over agencies. Also there in spades, though not surprising, is how much Musk’s anger at federal regulators powered his dedication to the wilding spree. Neither story quite connects that thread to particulars, but you can see it specifically in the especial animus toward the FAA and CFPB.
While the Times and Journal articles certainly hold back from the language, the plain facts of what both pieces describe make clear that the best conceptual model for DOGE is something between an “insider threat” action and a terrorist operation. The emphasis on secrecy, misdirection and illegality is all there, the focus on seizing control of central nodes of power and destroying things before the true stakeholders can figure out what happened. Both good reads.
