NPR's Juana Summers talks with Sahil Lavingia, who worked for the Department of Government Efficiency as a software engineer assigned to the Department of Veterans Affairs, about his experience.

US lawmakers on Thursday approved a White House request to claw back $9.4 billion from funding already allocated by Congress in a victory for Donald Trump.

The House narrowly passed the first round of DOGE cuts that would slash $9.4 billion in funding for PBS, NPR, and foreign aid. It was the first time that Congress had moved to ratify savings after billionaire Elon Musk and his team worked to cut federal funding across the government.

Steve Bannon called out the Department of Government Efficiency's efforts to reduce waste, fraud and abuse, saying that the White House task force that was helmed by Elon Musk "delivered zero." Newsweek has reached out to Bannon for comment via text message on Wednesday.

A former DOGE staffer says he was fired for praising the government's efficiency in an interview, despite the agency's stated commitment to finding waste.

President Trump said DOGE's work is "not finished at all" after his relationship with Elon Musk blew up in spectacular fashion last week.

I did not find the federal government to be rife with waste, fraud and abuse,” said Sahil Lavingia while recounting his 55-day stint within DOGE.

Offices housing the U.S. Geological Survey's New England Water Science Center and the regional headquarters of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will not close at the end of the summer. The agencies still face steep budget cuts under the Trump administration's budget proposal.