Donald Trump

Jacob Sullum | 11.13.2024 12:01 AM

Elon Musk, President-elect Donald Trump's bounciest adviser, thinks he can identify "at least" $2 trillion in federal budget cuts. Although critics derided the billionaire entrepreneur's suggestion as improbably ambitious, that assessment hinges on political assumptions rather than a clear-eyed understanding of what could be accomplished if Trump were serious about restoring fiscal discipline.

Unfortunately, there is little reason to think he is. Trump's record during his first term and his positions during his 2024 campaign suggest he will continue the federal government's longstanding pattern of unrestrained borrowing even as the imbalance between revenue and spending becomes increasingly dire.

Cutting $2 trillion from the federal budget, which totaled $6.8 trillion in fiscal year 2024, would return us to the level of spending recorded just five years ago, which gives you a sense of how quickly things have gone from bad to worse. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO)........

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