Leavitt Takes NBC Reporter To Task Over DOGE Cuts

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt laid the smackdown on NBC White House correspondent Peter Alexander after he attempted to frame the efforts of President Donald Trump’s administration to cut waste, fraud and abuse as troublesome to Republican voters.

“We’re now hearing from constituents in some traditionally red districts right now complaining about what they say is the chainsaw approach, and saying that it’s been done very sloppily, the cuts to jobs and spending. How do you respond to that criticism?” the reporter asked.

“I love how the media takes a few critics, when the overwhelming response from the American people is support for what this administration is doing,” Leavitt responded.

“If you look at the public polling, 70% of Americans, according to CBS, believe that President Trump is delivering on the promises he made,” she said.

“And there should be no secret about the fact that this administration is committed to cutting waste, fraud, and abuse. The president campaigned on that promise,” the press secretary said.

“Americans elected him on that promise, and he’s actually delivering on it. And this is something that Democrats promised they would do for decades. President Trump is just the first president to get it done,” she said.

Alexander went on to ask Leavitt if the administration shared evidence of fraud with the Department of Justice, as if to suggest that the fraud findings were not real, and she shredded him.

“In fact, according to an IG report from the Social Security Administration, there were seventy-one billion dollars worth of fraud in one single fiscal year that we know about,” she said.

Alexander insisted that the $71 billion in fraud was actually accumulated during the course of many years, from 2015 to 2022, as if that somehow made it better.

“So are you defending $71 billion in fraud, Peter?” the press secretary said.

“That’s a lot of money, far too much. And that’s why this administration… Why is the media so against cutting waste, fraud, and abuse from the government? I don’t get it,” she said.

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Days before this encounter Leavitt pushed back on media and Democrat complaints about Trump’s efforts to dramatically cut federal spending through recommendations made to him by Department of Government Efficiency chief Elon Musk and his team.

Leavitt referenced past video clips of Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden all championing dramatic spending cuts, though only one of them — Clinton, along with a GOP-controlled Congress — managed to cut spending enough to balance the federal budget for a couple of years.

“To all of the Democrats who are planning to protest this week, here’s an explanation on DOGE, from your party’s own beloved leaders!” Leavitt posted on the X platform along with a video clip of Obama and Biden citing the need for cuts.

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Separately, other X users posted video clips of Clinton introducing massive cuts to the federal workforce and overall spending, which amounted to trillions in savings and balanced budgets during his two terms.

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The X account KanekoaTheGreat summarized the Clinton-era plan and its positive effects on the country:

Facing a ballooning deficit and mounting inefficiencies, Clinton announced an ambitious plan to slash wasteful spending, shrink bureaucracy, and rein in government overreach. He signed an executive order eliminating 100,000 federal jobs, a 12% cut in administrative costs, and the consolidation or termination of hundreds of outdated programs.

One of his biggest warnings? If wasteful spending wasn’t controlled, the federal deficit would soar to $650 billion per year by the early 2000s, with a growing share of tax dollars going toward interest payments on debt instead of public investment.

Fast forward to today. In 2024, the federal deficit stands at $1.83 trillion—nearly triple Clinton’s worst-case scenario. Interest on the debt alone has reached $880 billion, consuming an ever-larger portion of the national budget.

Clinton’s reforms worked during his presidency. The federal workforce shrank by 380,000 federal jobs—a 16% decrease. Programs were streamlined, waste was reduced, and deficits were brought under control.