On Saturday, XRP advocate John Deaton shared on his Twitter/X account a TikTok video featuring John Stewart criticizing Pentagon spending with the caption "If you think Elon Musk's and Vivek Ramaswamy's DOGE is unnecessary, check out this video!"

In a TikTok posted by Conservative News Today, Stewart criticized the U.S. Department of Defense for unmonitored spending despite a massive $850 billion budget. Speaking in a debate with a complacent DOD official, the comedian pointed out the perplexing disparity between the Pentagon's enormous budget and the daily struggles of low-ranking soldiers, some of whom still rely on government assistance to put food on the table.

"We’ve come out of 20 years of war, and the Pentagon gets a raise," Stewart bluntly stated. "I can’t understand why $850 billion for a department means soldiers still have to rely on food stamps. To me, that’s damn corruption."

John Deaton has been recognized by the cryptocurrency community for his support of Ripple Labs and its cryptocurrency, XRP, for which he filed an amicus brief on behalf of XRP holders, arguing that the SEC's classification of cryptocurrencies as securities has unfairly harmed retail investors. Deaton is also the founder of CryptoLaw, a legal platform believed to provide public information, links to articles, and in-depth analyses of the regulatory landscape of the U.S. cryptocurrency industry. As a Republican candidate in Massachusetts, Deaton attempted to unseat loyal cryptocurrency skeptic Elizabeth Warren in the 2024 U.S. Senate election, though unsuccessfully.

While not necessarily guaranteeing against all government agencies, Deaton's frustration with the federal government's inefficiency is at least understandable in the context of his ongoing legal battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The agency recently sued a U.S.-based cryptocurrency project, Dragonchain, alleging that its platform conducted a $16.5 million unregistered DRGN token offering.

Court filings show that the SEC is ready to pursue the lawsuit despite Chairman Gensler's impending departure on Inauguration Day, January 20. Incoming SEC Chairman Paul Atkins is expected to implement the Trump administration's pro-cryptocurrency agenda.

To clarify, the Government Efficiency Department, named after this billionaire's favorite cryptocurrency, will be co-led by Elon Musk himself, former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, and Republican House Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene. While the "department" in its name may suggest that DOGE will be a full-fledged government agency, President-elect Donald Trump stated that it would "provide advice and guidance from outside the government," indicating that DOGE will operate more as an independent advisory body. Musk’s unofficial role will also allow him to remain the head of electric car manufacturer Tesla, social media platform X, and rocket company SpaceX without raising unavoidable questions about potential conflicts of interest.

The main focus of DOGE will be to identify inefficiencies in federal spending, paving the way for the new administration to "dismantle the Government Bureaucracy, cut unnecessary regulations, reduce wasteful spending, and restructure Federal Agencies," according to Trump’s statement. The work of this department will conclude by July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence.

Ripple donated $5 million for Trump's inauguration ceremony

Meanwhile, U.S. cryptocurrency companies, including Ripple, are doubling their financial support for Donald Trump, pledging millions of dollars for his inauguration celebration. The three-day event will feature galas, parades, and a victory dinner celebrating Trump along with Vice President-elect JD Vance.

According to Fox News, blockchain payment company Ripple has donated $5 million in XRP tokens. Cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Kraken each donated $1 million, while digital asset payment provider MoonPay announced it would contribute an undisclosed amount.

Interestingly, the chairman and co-founder of Ripple, Chris Larsen, is one of the largest contributors to Kamala Harris's campaign, having donated over $11 million to Future Forward PAC to support her presidential campaign. Meanwhile, Ripple's CEO Brad Garlinghouse is said to be one of the first cryptocurrency executives to have a private meeting with Donald Trump just days after his victory.

Millions of dollars flowing from cryptocurrency companies are just a small part of the record $200 million raised by the inauguration fund, surpassing the $107 million from Trump’s first term and beating Biden’s $62 million. A source close to the Trump-Vance inauguration committee expressed confidence that they would be able to reach the $225 million milestone by Inauguration Day.

Large technology companies have joined cryptocurrency companies in contributing to the fund, with top business executives such as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, and OpenAI's Sam Altman each donating $1 million.

"Amazon donated $1 million while Ripple donated $5 million," John Deaton posted on X in response to this news. "New era."

DYOR! #Write2Win #Write&Earn $XRP