Veteran leftist politician and long-time Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders made a rare turn to support billionaire Elon Musk on Sunday (December 1), praising him for leading the proposed cuts to defense spending plan from the efficiency department of President Donald Trump’s administration, agreeing to reform the $886 billion defense budget. Following the news, Dogecoin (DOGE) surged in the Asian trading session on Monday, reaching a high of $0.4592.
Trump announced that Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy would co-lead the efficiency department, aimed at reducing excessive regulation, cutting wasteful spending, and proposing restructuring of federal agencies. Musk recently expressed numerous opinions on Twitter, including the issue of the Department of Defense failing its audit for the seventh consecutive time. He also hinted that the efficiency department "will improve the effectiveness of defense spending."
Sanders posted on Twitter: "Musk is right. The U.S. Department of Defense has a budget of $886 billion and has failed its audit for the seventh consecutive time. It has lost track of how many billions it has. In 2023, only 13 senators voted against the military-industrial complex and the wasteful and fraudulent defense budget. This situation must change."
In response to Sanders' post, Musk sent two American flag emojis.
Recently, Musk has been vocally advocating for a shift in military strategy, promoting the use of drones and artificial intelligence (AI) to replace traditional fighter jets.
He criticized the F-35 program, advocating for drones to replace manned aircraft. Musk called manned aircraft like the F-35 outdated, which sparked defense from the U.S. Department of Defense and Lockheed Martin, emphasizing that despite cost overruns and delays, global demand for the aircraft remains strong.
Musk's comments align with his broad concerns about government overspending and fiscal responsibility.
It is noteworthy that Sanders' statement is seen as a very rare shift. Previously, Musk and Sanders had a contentious exchange. In November 2021, Musk and Sanders had a spat after the senator called for the wealthy to pay their "fair share" of taxes.
Sanders said, "We must demand that extremely wealthy people pay their fair share."
Musk mockingly said at the time, "I keep forgetting you're still alive, do you want me to sell more (Tesla) stock, Bernie? Just say the word..."
In the lead-up to this year's election, Sanders had been outspoken in criticizing Musk. Earlier this year, he criticized Tesla for donating to Trump's campaign while advocating for publicly funded elections.
With Sanders' shift, Musk's efficiency department once again became a trending topic on Twitter, further driving the surge of Dogecoin, which has a similar abbreviation to the department.
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