Cantwell: Keep Elon Musk, DOGE Out of HUD

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) is one of two dozen signatories to a pointedly worded letter confronting HUD Secretary Scott Turner.

There is no dithering here, no attempts at ingratiation. The letter gets right to the point:

We are also seeking additional information about alarming reports of HUD’s plans to cancel a program serving families, seniors and people with disabilities and fire half of its workforce. To address these questions, we request information about DOGE’s involvement at HUD, and the impact it is having on HUD funding and staffing needed to implement its mission.

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HUD engages in critical work supporting communities in expanding their housing supply, providing rental assistance and preventing homelessness - work that is urgently important for millions of Americans looking to purchase a home to build generational wealth or find an affordable place to rent.

Generations of ideologues have poked and prodded at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, so in that sense the DOGE Task Force isn't unique. But unlike many before him, Elon Musk seems serious about curtailing HUD's vast bureaucracy and labyrinth of grant programs.

According to Cantwell, the task force has threatened to terminate half of HUD's existing workforce, including many locally based field offices.

Also on the chopping block, Cantwell says, is the Green and Resilient Retrofit Program, a Biden-era initiative to lessen energy usage and improve efficiency in HUD units.

Turner is all for it. Previously a two-term Republican congressman (and NFL cornerback before that!), Turner has so far gamely cooperated with Musk. In fact, he's the putative head of the task force.

According to a press release,

HUD will be detailed and deliberate about every dollar spent to serve rural, tribal and urban communities...Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we are no longer in a business-as-usual posture and the DOGE task force will play a critical role in helping to identify and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse and ultimately better serve the American people. We have already identified over $260 million in savings and we have more to accomplish.