#transparency

This boy still has baby formula breath.

A DOGE official in his 20s testified today that he canceled federal research grants based on personal judgment. No peer review. No subject matter expertise. No formal process. Just him. And books he had read. He flagged a grant studying HIV in prisons during the Reagan and Clinton era — decades of academic research — as “one of the craziest” because it mentioned LGBTQ in the description.

He flagged a grant examining the military service experiences of Black, Native American, female, and immigrant veterans as crazy.

His qualification for making these calls: “A person can have enough judgment from reading books.” He was then asked if he regretted cutting programs that may have led to people dying. “No.” Did DOGE reduce the deficit?

“No.” A person in their 20s. Reading books. Canceling peer-reviewed academic research. Deciding what knowledge the American government is allowed to fund. No experience. No regret. No results. Under oath.