Bonus Pod: Draining the Swamp: Trump's Federal Layoffs, Epstein Files & Transparent Cabinet
14:17 Share

With the American Express Gold Card, I can earn four times membership rewards points at U.S. supermarkets. So with all these groceries, I'm also getting points. Learn more at americanexpress.com slash U.S. slash explore dash gold. Terms and points cap apply.

Can you guarantee that Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security will not be touched? I've said it so many times, you shouldn't be asking me that question. Now, we are going to look for fraud. I'm sure you're okay with that. Like people that shouldn't be on. We have a lot of people. You see that immediately when you see people that are 200 years old that are being sent checks for Social Security.

You're listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson. Good Thursday morning. Ben Ferguson with you. It's nice to have you here on the 47 Morning Update and hear the big stories we're talking about. First up, it was one of the most transparent meetings we've ever seen. A cabinet meeting. Donald Trump saying to the world, here's our agenda. This is what we're doing. And

Elon Musk coming into that cabinet meeting explaining exactly what Doge is doing to cut massive government waste, fraud, and abuse. I'll have the incredible details for you in just a second. We also found out Donald Trump and his administration...

have now sent out a directive for a large-scale federal layoff, admitting now that the U.S. government is employing way too many people and it's time for every department to start making cuts immediately. How much money is this going to save you? I'll have that as well in just a second. And finally, Donald Trump paying off on a campaign promise that if he was elected, we would have transparency on things like the Epstein Files.

Well, Pam Bondi, the attorney general, is saying today you may be able to read that client list. It's the 47 Morning Update and it starts right now. Story number one. President Donald Trump convened his first cabinet meeting of his second term in the White House and the meeting was notable for the attendance of Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency. You know it as Doge, who has been instrumental in advancing

advising the administration on reducing government waste and enhancing operational efficiency. Now, Musk's presence underscores the administration's commitment to leveraging private sector expertise to streamline the bloated government. During the meeting, President Trump also announced his plans to impose a 25% tariff

on imports from the European Union, aiming to address trade imbalances and protect American industries. That decision reflects the administration's focus on fostering fair trade practices and supporting domestic economic growth for American workers here at home. The cabinet also discussed ongoing efforts to negotiate an end to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

President Trump expressed optimism about hosting President Zelensky at the White House to finalize a critical minerals deal, which could bolster economic ties and also help America get back some of the money that we've been sending to Ukraine. Overall, the meeting highlighted the administration's proactive approach to economic policy.

as well as international diplomacy. And the biggest part of the meeting clearly dealt with government efficiency, setting a positive tone for the initiatives planned in the new term. I want you to hear what the president and Elon Musk had to say. This may have been the most important part of the meeting.

You know, it's sacrificing a lot.

and getting a lot of praise, I'll tell you. I'd like to have Elon Musk please say a few words. - Thank you, Mr. President. Well, I actually just call myself the couple tech support here because this is actually,

As crazy as it sounds, that is almost a literal dispersion of the work that the Doge team is doing, is helping fix the government computer systems. Many of these systems are extremely old. They don't communicate. There are a lot of mistakes in the systems. The software doesn't work. So we are actually textable. It's ironic, but it's true.

The overall goal here with the Doge team is to help address the enormous deficit. We simply cannot sustain, as a country, two trillion dollar deficits. The interest rates, just the interest on the national debt now exceeds the Defense Department's spending. We spend a lot on the Defense Department, but we're spending over a trillion dollars on interest. If this continues, the country will become de facto bankrupt. It's not an optional thing, it is an essential thing.

That's the reason I'm here. And taking a lot of flak. And getting a lot of death threats, by the way. I mean, I like to stack them up, you know. But if we don't do this, America will go bankrupt. That's why it has to be done. I'm confident at this point, knock on wood, you know, knock on my wooden head, the, let's go with a lot of wood up there, that we can actually find $20 in savings. That would be roughly 15% of the $7 trillion budget.

And obviously that can only be done with the support of everyone in this room. And I'd like to thank everyone for your support. Thank you very much. This can only be done with your support. So this is really the urgent support function for the president and for the agencies and departments to help achieve those savings and to effectively find 15% reduction in fraud and waste.

And we bring the receipts. So people say, "What is this reel?" Just go to doge.gov. We line item by line item. We specify each item. And I should say, also, we will make mistakes. We won't be perfect, but when we make a mistake, we'll fix it very quickly.

So for example, with USAID, one of the things we accidentally canceled very briefly was Ebola, Ebola prevention. I think we all want Ebola prevention. If we're to achieve a trillion dollar deficit reduction in financial year 2026, it requires saving $4 billion per day, every day, from now through the end of September.

But we can do it and we will do it. It is very clear from this cabinet meeting that the reason why Donald Trump had Elon Musk there to address the cabinet is this is the mandate from the president. And it's a mandate from the voters. And he is telling everyone in his cabinet, you better get out your pencils and start identifying waste, fraud and abuse. Because we are going to give the American people a better functioning government that costs a lot less than what they're having to pay in right now.

Now, story number two. Federal agencies are now being mandated to develop plans to eliminate employee positions, according to a memo distributed by Donald Trump's administration that now sets in motion what could become a sweeping realignment of our American government.

The memo expands the Republican president's effort to downsize the federal workforce, which he described as a bloated and impediment to his agenda. Thousands of probationary employees have already been fired. And now his administration is turning its attention to career officials with civil service protection. Agencies are directed to submit by March the 13th. This goes back to what the president said and Elon Musk said. We have to act fast. We're not waiting around to get this done.

And their plan from these agencies for what they're going to do to have a reduction in their workforce, which would not only lay off employees, but also eliminate the positions altogether so they wouldn't be filled back later. Now, the results, they say, could be extensive changes in how our government works.

functions. Many believe it's long overdue. Quote, the federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt is what the memo from Russell Vallott, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, and Charles Ezel, the acting director of Office of Personnel Management,

which functions as a human resources agency, said in their letter. They said, quote, Now, Trump foreshadowed this goal in an executive order that he signed with Elon Musk. And what Donald Trump said is, This is something that many of these cabinet secretaries knew when they were picked by Donald Trump. Now, the order said,

agency leaders, quote, shall promptly undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force. Some departments have already begun the process, we've been told today as well, in the Cabinet meeting. The General Services Administration, for example, which handles federal real estate, told employees on Monday that a reduction force was underway and they would do everything in their, quote, power to make...

our department and your department fair and dignified. Now, the memo also comes as Donald Trump prepared to bring everyone together saying, here's our plan for the second term. Elon Musk is going to be there. We already heard from him earlier. And we are going to make sure you understand that this is the initiative of the White House itself.

and the American voter. The White House press secretary, Caroline Leavitt, told reporters that all of the cabinet secretaries take the advice and direction of Doge, saying, quote, they'll be providing updates on their efforts to Doge, and they'll also be providing updates on what they're doing at their agencies in terms of policies and implementing the promises.

that the president made on the campaign trail to the American people. So let's just recap what just happened with this cabinet meeting when it comes to you as a taxpayer. There's really two parts of this plan and agenda from Donald Trump. One, it is to find the waste, fraud, and abuse and get rid of it.

And that's certainly a part of what Doge is doing. But the administration directing large scale federal layoffs is a completely different way to cut spending. And he's saying the government is not serving the people. The government is overspending. We have way too many employees who aren't doing a good job. Some of them apparently are dead. Some of them don't show up for work and some of them don't even check their e-mails.

So this is now a new way of reforming our government to work for the American people and be more efficient. And every American should be thrilled by this. And lastly, story number three. All right, let's move to some breaking news now. The Attorney General Pam Bondi has announced that the Department of Justice plans to release documents related to Jeffrey Epstein today. The documents are expected to include documents.

flight logs and names of individuals associated with Jeffrey Epstein. Bondi emphasized the importance of protecting the identities of more than 250 victims, which has contributed to the delay in releasing the information. She described the contents of what are in these files as something that is sickening. Take a listen from Fox News.

said last week that you have the Epstein files on your desk is when can we see them and what's taking so long to release them? I do. Jesse, there are well over this. This will make you sick.

200 victims. 200. Well over. Over 250, actually. So we have to make sure that their identity is protected and their personal information. But other than that, I think tomorrow, you know, the personal information of victims. Other than that, I think tomorrow, Jesse, breaking news right now, you're going to see some Epstein information being released. Bye.

By my office. What kind? Are we going to see who was on the flights? Are we going to see any evidence from what he recorded? Because he had all of his homes wired with recording devices. What you're going to see, hopefully tomorrow, is a lot of flight logs, a lot of names, a lot of information. But it's pretty sick what that man did. Okay. Along with his co-defendant. Absolutely. And he had help. That's for sure. He sure did.

He had help, that's for sure. Now this announcement follows bipartisan pressure from lawmakers for increased transparency regarding Epstein's connections. Senator Marsha Blackburn, for example, Republican from Tennessee, and Representative Ana Paulina Luna, Republican from Florida, have been vocal in urging the release of the Epstein's clients list and related records.

The forthcoming release aims to provide insight into Epstein's network and associations. Now, Epstein, if you remember, he was a financier with ties to numerous high-profile individuals. He was arrested in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges.

but died of, quote, suicide before his trial. His associate, a woman by the last name Maxwell, was also convicted in 2021 for her role in recruiting underage girls for Epstein, and she is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.

Now, the release of these documents is anticipated to shed further light on the extent of Epstein's activities and associations. What we also are expecting is there is going to be quite a few high-profile individuals from the political world that had very close relationships with Jeffrey Epstein. Now, to be clear, if there are Republicans on this list, I want to know exactly what they were doing with Jeffrey Epstein. If there are Democrats on this list,

I want to know exactly what they were doing with Jeffrey Epstein. In fact, I really don't care if you're a Republican or a Democrat. I care about transparency. And the fact that there is an Epstein's client list and yet no one except for Jeffrey Epstein and Maxwell have been arrested for all of these heinous crimes and the hundreds of victims.

and underage girls they trafficked tells you just how big this cover-up actually was. I also want to know why the government didn't act sooner. They had lots of information about Jeffrey Epstein and what he was doing. So who were they protecting in our government? Or who called off the government from actually doing the job of investigating the heinous crimes against underage girls?

This should be what we all should be wanting for, transparency. And that's exactly why President Donald Trump and Pam Bondi are saying it's time for you and everyone else to see the list. Thank you for listening to the 47 Morning Update with Ben Ferguson. Please make sure you hit subscribe wherever you're listening to this podcast right now. And for more in-depth news, also subscribe to the Ben Ferguson podcast, and we will see you back here tomorrow.

Dinnertime. It's where little moments are cherished. With Blue Cash Preferred, get 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets and bring everyone together. I did say everyone. Learn more at americanexpress.com slash explore dash bcp. Terms and cash back cap apply with Blue Cash Preferred.