Expert Welcomes Musk's DOGE Initiative to Combat Government Fraud

Fraud risk expert Linda Miller expressed cautious optimism about the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) efforts to combat government fraud, emphasizing the non-political nature of the issue.

In a recent interview on CBS’s ‘60 Minutes,’ Linda Miller, a seasoned fraud risk expert, discussed the potential of the Trump administration’s DOGE program to save taxpayers significant amounts of money. Miller, who has long been involved in fighting government fraud, stated that the issue transcends political lines. ‘Fraud is not a political issue. This is mom and apple pie stuff,’ she remarked, stressing the universal agreement on the need to stop fraudulent activities that drain taxpayer dollars.

Miller highlighted the distinction between fraud and wasteful spending, pointing out that while DOGE and its founder Elon Musk often conflate the two, they are separate concerns. She cited examples like investment in foreign fertilizer as wasteful but not fraudulent. Miller’s insights were part of a broader discussion on the show, which included other experts who emphasized that fraud, costing hundreds of billions, involves not just individual deceit but also sophisticated international crime rings from nations like Russia and China.

Despite her reservations about equating fraud with wasteful spending, Miller welcomed Musk’s public acknowledgment of the massive fraud problem. ‘To be honest, Elon Musk coming out and saying, ‘There is a huge amount of fraud,’ I welcome that message completely because, finally, someone is actually saying this,’ she stated. Recent efforts by Musk and DOGE volunteer Antonio Gracias have already uncovered significant issues, identifying over 2 million noncitizens who were improperly issued Social Security numbers in fiscal years 2024 and 2025.

While Miller remains cautiously optimistic about DOGE’s impact, she noted that the effectiveness of the program in tackling real fraud is still under evaluation. ‘The jury’s still out,’ she said, but expressed hope that DOGE’s focus could lead to substantial savings for the American taxpayer.