DOGE and Musk impact New Mexicans

By Diane Denish, Corner to Corner

Elon Musk has been dominating the headlines recently with his slash and burn efforts as head of “DOGE,” the so-called Department of Government Efficiency. The world’s richest man is everywhere, firing federal workers, in the Oval Office, you name it. 

I wanted to learn more about Musk, so I listened to the biography of Musk by Walter Isaacson. I’ve also read a slew of business articles about Tesla, SpaceX, and Musk’s current endeavor DOGE. 

Here is what I learned. 

He’s a South African by birth. Although he once attended an anti-apartheid rally, he is deeply rooted in the segregation principles of Apartheid. 

In addition to South Africa, he has Canadian and U. S. citizenship.

Musk is haunted by his father’s verbally abusive treatment and bullying he experienced from his peers as a kid. 

He is not an engineer but has degrees in physics and economics from the University of Pennsylvania. 

He is Donald Trump’s largest political donor, having contributed more than $225 million to Trump and his political committees.

Musk is on the autism spectrum. He admits to bouts of serious depression, bipolar symptoms and fears of being alone. 

He is a regular user of ketamine and, by his own admission, occasional user of other drugs. 

He has 14 children with five different women (one child is deceased).

His grand vision of taking humans to Mars is primarily funded by his multi-billion-dollar government contracts for SpaceX. 

For me, the worrisome character revelations come in testimony from family, friends, investors and colleagues. All of them mention his lack of emotion and empathy and emphasize his sometimes-adolescent behavior. 

This adolescence is often displayed on his social media platform X, where he attacks   fellow billionaires Bezos and Gates. He called one critic a “pedo” on X and was later sued. His lawyer’s defense: “He’s a petulant adolescent with a bad Twitter habit.” 

He not only lacks empathy for others, but he also believes empathy and collegiality are not assets in the workplace. 

He thrives on chaos in the workplace. It plays out by setting unrealistic deadlines, challenging or ignoring regulations, random firings that upend lives and cutting costs. 

New Mexicans may have initially dismissed Musk as political theater. But now as CEO of DOGE, we are watching Musk’s penchant for chaos and lack of empathy impact New Mexicans. 

DOGE is a made-up department not established by Congress. It is staffed by a team of twenty-somethings who are running roughshod through federal agencies, gaining access to emails and private personal data of any New Mexican who pays taxes or receives payments from the Treasury Department and Social Security Administration. 

More than 87% of New Mexicans over 65 (280,000 people) receive Social Security benefits, as do people with disabilities. Musk is threatening Social Security, calling it a Ponzi scheme, and lying about dead people getting checks. New Mexicans can’t afford Social Security check delays or dismantling of the system as Musk’s cavalry tries to burn it down. 

New Mexicans are losing their jobs. The Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, a community college, had twenty of its one hundred employees fired by DOGE.

Carlsbad Caverns lost twelve Park Rangers and Carson National Forest also lost employees. The New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions has documented 186 unemployment claims from the departments of Interior, Agriculture and the Veterans Administration with more to come. 

So, what can you do? Do your own research. If Musk’s actions trouble you, join a protest. If his actions impact you or others, know your rights, speak up and push back. And reach out to friends or neighbors who work for federal agencies. They might need you.