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Muse Spark 1.2Nov 4, 2026meta/muse-spark-1.2-20260805

Is Donald Trump improving the US government?

Is the U.S. government improving under Trump? I'll gather recent metrics on efficiency, economy, and approval for a balanced look.

Whether Donald Trump is improving the U.S. government is debated, with different metrics and political perspectives pointing to different conclusions.

What the administration says it is doing

The Trump administration frames its second-term agenda as reforming government to make it smaller and more efficient:

•"Reforming government to work for you" - ensuring Federal programs are efficient, transparent, and focused on delivering real value to taxpayers—making government smaller, smarter, and work for the American people
•Stated goal: "To restore accountability to the American public, this order commences a critical transformation of the Federal bureaucracy. By eliminating waste, bloat, and insularity"
•Specific initiatives cited include the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), launched January 20, 2025 by executive order, with a mission to modernize federal technology, increase productivity, and cut regulations and spending, and to slash bureaucracy, modernize tech, and axe wasteful spending

Administration and supporters point to:

•Border and immigration enforcement: The administration reports steep declines in illegal border crossings, citing an 87% fall in apprehensions between October 2024 and October 2025
•Deregulation and tax policy: Supporters credit tax reforms and deregulation efforts with stimulating business investment and boosting consumer confidence, and supporters view tax cuts and deregulation as vital for stimulating economic growth
•Workforce and procurement changes: DOGE staff have transitioned from temporary "special government employees" to full-time roles within agencies like the General Services Administration (GSA), Department of the Treasury, and Department of Defense, and the administration approved $9 billion in budget rescissions

What evaluations of DOGE and spending show

Independent analyses show mixed results:

•DOGE was created to slash waste and shrink government, initially targeting $2 trillion in budget savings. That figure was later revised down to $1 trillion and then $150 billion
•President Donald Trump and Elon Musk promised $2 trillion in budget cuts. Instead, it delivered a paltry $9 billion in official cuts (which Congress confirmed via a rescission bill passed in July)
•The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) fell short of its core goal to reduce federal spending, but it delivered one of the fastest peacetime reductions in the federal workforce on record
•Treasury data show the federal government spent $7.6 trillion in the first 11 months of 2025, exceeding spending levels from prior years, and Federal outlays showed no meaningful decline during DOGE's tenure
•Most federal spending is driven by entitlement programs, which DOGE lacked authority to change
•Where DOGE did leave a mark was employment: Federal civilian employment fell by about 271,000 workers from January to November 2025, a roughly 9% decline in less than a year. Other estimates also describe about a 9% decrease while government spending increased by nearly 6%

DOGE claimed about $215 billion in savings, or roughly $1,335 per taxpayer as of Jan. 1, 2026, but independent analyses dispute claimed savings, and one analysis noted DOGE produced some real reductions, but no credible audit supports its headline totals as net taxpayer savings

Supporters see the workforce reduction and embedded reforms as long-term institutionalization, with DOGE's ethos embedded into agencies. Critics and analysts note risks of operational bottlenecks, increased contractor use, and that a 10% workforce cut saves roughly $40 billion annually—modest relative to total expenditures

What public opinion polling shows

•At the end of October, approval polling averages showed President Donald Trump at 38% approval, with 60% disapproving. October also saw the lowest average approval rating of Trump's second term, at 37%
•A Pew Research survey found three-in-ten Americans now approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, while 68% disapprove
•On views of government management specifically, a Partnership for Public Service survey found fully 63% of Americans say management is heading in the "wrong direction", and only 20% say management is heading in the "right direction"
•Only 18% of Americans say the federal government is operating better compared with 62% who say it is operating worse

Even among Republicans, positivity has declined: less than half of Republicans (47%) say management is heading in the right direction compared with 27% who say it is heading in the wrong direction, down from 69% who said right direction in April 2025

Other areas of contention

•The October 2025 federal government shutdown led to the furlough of 750,000 federal workers, with the administration using the shutdown period to pursue workforce reductions and program cuts, which supporters called long-overdue reform and opponents called politically motivated and disruptive to services
•Views on immigration and deregulation remain polarized: conservatives largely approve of focus on securing the border and cutting regulations, while liberals view many actions as harmful to vulnerable communities and undermining democratic values

In summary, evaluations depend on which definition of "improving" is used. Supporters point to reduced workforce size, border enforcement numbers, deregulation, and attempts to modernize technology as improvements in efficiency and accountability. Critics and independent fiscal data point to continued growth in total federal spending, limited net savings, low public approval of government management, and disruptions from shutdowns and layoffs as evidence that management has not improved.

Citations (3)

  1. 1ainvest.comData and tools
    DOGE's Long-Term Impact on U.S. Government Spending and Fiscal Policy: Assessing Institutionalization and Sectoral Implications for Investors

    Backs: “Deregulation and tax policy: Supporters credit tax reforms and deregulation efforts with stimulating business investment and boosting consumer confidence, and supporters view tax cuts and deregulation as vital for stimulating economic growth. Workforce and procurement changes: DOGE staff have transitioned from…”

  2. 2allwork.spaceNews and media
    DOGE Did Not Cut Spending, But It Did Shrink The Workforce

    Backs: “Independent analyses show mixed results: DOGE was created to slash waste and shrink government, initially targeting $2 trillion in budget savings.”

  3. 3ourpublicservice.orgNonprofits and think tanks
    Americans oppose how the federal government is being managed

    Backs: “A Pew Research survey found three-in-ten Americans now approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, while 68% disapprove. On views of government management specifically, a Partnership for Public Service survey found fully 63% of Americans say management is heading in the "wrong direction", and…”