ELON MUSK’S TALKING PROBLEM. Polls have repeatedly shown that majorities of voters support the work President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency is doing to cut waste and fraud in federal spending. A recent poll by CBS News found that 51% of those surveyed believe there is a lot of wasteful spending in federal government agencies, while an additional 36% believe there is some wasteful spending, for a total of 87% who believe there is waste in government. 

Given that, it is not surprising that 54% said they believe DOGE leader Elon Musk and his team should have some, or in some cases a lot, of influence over the spending and operations of government agencies.