Today in the Telegraph:
“American households could be in for a windfall of thousands of dollars thanks to a dividend from the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).
At least, that’s what Elon Musk claims.
But how much do taxpayers stand to benefit by? And will the proposal even materialise at all?
The amount that has been floated on social media would mean a $5,000 cheque being sent out – but ultimately, it depends on how much Doge can cut as it tears through the federal government looking for savings.
The concept originated with James Fishback, chief executive of investment firm Azoria, who pitched Mr Musk a proposal to “help make Doge real for millions of Americans”.
Under the scheme, 20 per cent of its savings would be set aside and handed back to the 79 million households which are “net payers of federal income tax”.
Mr Musk has declared he wants to trim the federal budget by $2 trillion by the time his agency wraps up in 2026.
If 20 per cent of that – $400 billion – is returned to taxpayers, then by Mr Fishback’s calculations it would mean $5,000 being sent to every home.
Of course, whether Doge will actually be able to find $2 trillion in savings is another matter altogether.
‘Cuts worth $50bn identified’
Scott Bessent, the treasury secretary, claims the agency has identified cuts worth $50 billion since it was created by Donald Trump a month ago.
Per household, this would be worth about $127.
Assuming Mr Fishback’s scheme gets the final sign-off from Mr Trump, then the true amount is likely to fall somewhere between those two amounts.”
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