Seventy-six per cent of Americans support the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), according to a new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll.
At a White House press briefing last week, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt highlighted the poll findings.
“76 per cent of Americans support the DOGE-led efforts of a full-scale investigation to find and eliminate fraud and waste in government expenditures,” she said.
Billionaire Elon Musk, who leads the initiative to eliminate fraud and streamline federal spending, on Sunday reacted to the poll findings on X, writing, “The American people like what they see.”
The American people like what they see https://t.co/vwsHXEo6QH
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2025
DOGE has reported billions in government savings, launching an “Agency Efficiency Leaderboard” ranking departments based on cost-cutting efforts. Agencies such as the Department of Education, General Services Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Labour, and Office of Personnel Management have recorded the most savings.
“DOGE, thus far, has proven incredibly successful in making our government more efficient,” Leavitt said.
Tasked with cutting wasteful spending, DOGE has flagged massive financial mismanagement. Earlier, Musk revealed that the US government loses $2 trillion annually and cited examples such as the missing $12 billion for submarines and trillions in unchecked payments, which continue due to bureaucratic inertia.
The department earlier cancelled a $21 million fund meant to boost voter turnout in India. It also scrapped funding for several other overseas projects, including $29 million for political programmes in Bangladesh, $47 million for education in Asia, $40 million for gender equality, and $32 million for the Prague Civil Society Centre.
Trump’s Overall Approval Rating At 52 Per Cent
The survey, conducted online from February 19 to 20 among 2,443 registered voters, also showed US President Donald Trump’s overall approval rating at 52 per cent in his first month back in office.
The poll highlighted strong public support for his handling of immigration, cutting government costs, and “returning America to its values.”
Describing it as “a very legitimate pollster,” she added that Americans “overwhelmingly give Trump very positive remarks,” with most of his policies receiving “strong majority support.”
Karoline Leavitt also noted that illegal border crossings are at a 15-year low, with only 220 crossings recorded last Saturday.