DOGE Department Destroyed in 294 Days: How a Political Meme Experiment Lost to the Washington Swamp

The Collapse of a Political Meme Experiment

Do you remember that U.S. government department named after Dogecoin? The image of Musk wielding a chainsaw to reshape the American bureaucracy has gone viral countless times in the crypto circle. Now this story has come to an end—the DOGE department has quietly cooled off.

The director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Cooper, recently admitted publicly for the first time: “It no longer exists.” From its high-profile announcement of establishment on the first day of Trump's presidency to its quiet dissolution this summer, this so-called Department of Government Efficiency only lasted 294 days. Doesn't this time span resemble those fleeting dog coins?

From Shiba Inu logo to chainsaw marketing

On January 20, 2025, on the day of Trump's inauguration, he signed an executive order to create the “Department of Government Efficiency,” with the English abbreviation directly using Dogecoin's DOGE. People in the crypto circle couldn't help but laugh – isn't this just bringing the meme coin playbook into the political arena?

The official website design is made very clear: the Dogecoin logo and Shiba Inu patterns cover the page, completely breaking away from the rigid and serious tone of traditional government institutions. Musk posted a photo on Twitter holding a chainsaw with the caption “This is for the bureaucracy.” This marketing tactic is reminiscent of how he previously promoted Dogecoin.

Simply put, DOGE has been imbued with a strong crypto narrative gene since its inception. It is not operating like a traditional government department; rather, it is replicating the symbolic communication strategies of the cryptocurrency world—deconstructing authority with meme culture and attracting the attention of young people with a sense of humor.

Silicon Valley tactics impact Washington

In terms of operation model, DOGE resembles a radical Web3 startup. Musk hired about 50 young people in their twenties, and this team, known as “doll soldiers,” wears hoodies and jeans, drinks Red Bull every day, and within three weeks, they reached out to major federal agencies, controlling the flow of funds and screening contract projects.

AI tools are their core weapon. From contract allocations to employee reimbursements, the complete data entry allows AI to run analyses, quickly identifying areas where money is being wasted. For example, discovering that government office buildings are largely underutilized can lead to immediate lease termination, saving $150 million.

This Silicon Valley spirit of “Move Fast and Break Things” has hit a wall in Washington. DOGE requires federal employees to submit weekly reports, and failure to do so is considered resignation; employees are threatened with administrative leave for not showing up. The traditional bureaucratic system and the radical management style of crypto have created a fierce chemical reaction.

When narrative meets reality

How grand the initial narrative is? Musk claims to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, while another official, Ramaswamy, is even harsher, saying he wants to optimize 70% of federal employees. These numbers are inflated like an ICO white paper, aiming to create topics and attract attention.

So what’s the result? DOGE claims to have cut about $160 billion in spending, yet it hasn’t even reached the initial target set by Musk. The Senate Democrats reported that DOGE has actually “wasted” over $21 billion in the past six months—$263 million in interest lost due to frozen Department of Energy loan projects, and $110 million worth of food and medicine rotting in warehouses due to the halt of the International Development Agency.

The rift between narrative and execution is growing wider. Democratic attorneys general from 14 states have sued Musk and Trump for unconstitutional actions, and DOGE is facing nearly 20 lawsuits, including allegations of unauthorized access to sensitive government data and violations of privacy laws.

Swamp won

The exit happened quietly. In May this year, Musk announced his resignation and publicly fell out with Trump over a certain bill. By summer, the DOGE team had gradually withdrawn from headquarters, and the guard posts and authorization signs had disappeared.

Cooper has publicly confirmed for the first time this month that DOGE no longer exists, and its functions have been taken over by the Human Resources Management Bureau. The full government hiring freeze, which was once a signature move for DOGE, has also ended. Some team members have moved to other government departments to take on new roles, such as the co-founder of Airbnb responsible for the National Design Studio, while others have gone to the Ministry of Health as Chief Technology Officer.

Florida Governor DeSantis summed it up quite well on Twitter: “DOGE fought against the Swamp, but the Swamp won.” This political meme coin experiment ultimately lost to the traditional power structure.

A little reflection

The story of DOGE actually taught a lesson to the crypto world. Symbolic economy and narrative-driven approaches are thriving in the Web3 space, but when it truly attempts to transform traditional systems, the resistance is greater than one can imagine.

Undeniably, crypto culture has started to permeate mainstream political spheres. Although DOGE has cooled down, it has proven that the “crypto-native” mindset is influencing governance models in the real world. The question is how to combine the innovative spirit of the crypto world with the stability of traditional governance to create new models that have both symbolic appeal and substantive effectiveness.

In the end, narrative is indeed a powerful tool for building consensus. However, if it is divorced from technological implementation and value creation, even the most splendid narrative is just a castle in the air. After the hype of memes fades, what truly remains are the technologies and projects that solve real problems. The 294-day lifecycle of DOGE perfectly illustrates this principle.