Doge

• Dogecoin (DOGE) experienced a 7.9% price surge, reaching $0.07579 amid a broader wave of bullish market sentiment. • The price jump follows a new regulatory proposal from the SEC, which has unexpectedly fueled positive momentum for cryptocurrencies. • Technical indicators show DOGE breaking above key averages, with traders now focusing on the $0.07619 resistance level as a critical breakout point.

Billionaire in interview with the Economist admits he was too consumed by politics and shares predictions about AIElon Musk has admitted he became too consumed by politics during his volatile alliance with Donald Trump and his brief appointment as the president’s financial axman, running the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge).The world’s richest person, and briefly its first trillionaire after his SpaceX company floated on the US stock exchange in June, made the confession in a wide-ranging interview with the Economist published on Thursday. He shared his positions on subjects from foreign wars to AI, and made a number of eye-opening predictions for the future. Continue reading...

Experts say cuts have hindered the response to DRC’s Ebola outbreak and resulted in ‘significant numbers’ of deathsElon Musk has an Ebola problem. SpaceX stock dropped precipitously after its initial public offering, and Tesla faces a wave of lawsuits. But instead of focusing on his companies, Musk has posted frequently on X about the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which he helped dismantle – or, in his words, feed into the woodchipper – last year.“Elon’s USAID crash-out over the past week has been a thing to behold,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, a former top USAID official who oversaw the agency’s Ebola response in 2014-2015 and the president of Refugees International. “In a way, it’s helpful that Elon is doing this, because it’s putting attention back on the issue of what he did last year.” Continue reading...

• A Politico analysis of data from Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reveals the administration saved less than 5 percent of its claimed savings through nearly 10,100 contract terminations. • DOGE, led by efficiency advocates, was tasked with reducing government waste and cutting unnecessary spending across federal agencies. • The significant gap between claimed and actual savings raises questions about the effectiveness of the administration's cost-reduction strategy and the accuracy of reported figures.

US judge says halt of $100m in funds allotted by Congress for scholars, writers and research illegal and discriminatoryA federal judge ruled on Thursday that the terminations of hundreds of humanities grants last year by the Trump administration’s so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) were unconstitutional and involved “blatant” discrimination. In April last year, Donald Trump’s administration terminated more than 1,400 grants, representing more than $100m in congressionally appropriated funds awarded to scholars, writers, research institutions and other humanities organizations.The terminations were part of a cost-cutting drive that billionaire Elon Musk was leading at Doge. Continue reading...

Report by Verdant says rooting out waste, fraud and tax avoidance would save money that could help improve public servicesA “Doge of the left,” could save up to £30bn a year for taxpayers by rooting out waste, fraud and tax avoidance, according to the first report from a new green thinktank.Launched amid growing interest in the future manifesto of Zack Polanksi’s Green party, the Verdant thinktank will be co-chaired by James Meadway, a former adviser to Labour shadow chancellor John McDonnell, and civil society campaigner Deborah Doane. Continue reading...