(NewsNation) — White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the Trump administration’s federal buyout program Thursday and said more than 77,000 federal workers have accepted an offer that will save taxpayers money.
“We are saving taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars with this buyout,” Leavitt told NewsNation’s “Morning in America” on Thursday. “We are saving taxpayers money at the end of the day. This is going to make our government more efficient.”
The deferred resignation offer deadline was reached at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday, after U.S. District Court Judge George O’Toole declined to further pause a federal government buyout program, enabling the government to forge ahead with its “Fork in the Road” program. The buyout offer gives those who choose to resign eight months of pay and benefits.
Leavitt previously called the program the “first of many legal wins” for President Donald Trump.
Time for US government to run as a business: Leavitt on DOGE
Trump will reveal some of the Department of Government Efficiency’s findings in a Thursday news conference, Leavitt said.
“This is long overdue. It’s about time that our federal government runs like a business, just like every other small business and large business in our country has to look at money in, money out. It’s a common-sense solution,” she said.
The remarks come amid DOGE’s launch of “a war on waste” and plans to reshape the federal government. Trump claimed Tuesday that DOGE has uncovered tens of billions of dollars in fraud and abuse, blaming bad government contracts.
Leavitt highlighted federal agencies likely to be eradicated, such as the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Department of Education, after DOGE has completed its investigations.
Trump administration working to drive down inflation
Leavitt also said the Trump administration is working to put more money in Americans’ pockets and drive down prices, adding that Trump has already taken significant steps to do so.
“Number one, he signed an executive order to launch a massive deregulatory campaign. We know more regulation leads to higher inflation,” she said. “The president is also committed to historic tax cuts, which will ultimately put more money back into the pockets of the American people.”
Leavitt’s remarks follow new data from the Labor Department, which shows the consumer price index increased 3% in January from a year ago. It is the fourth consecutive increase in the annual inflation rate since September, when it fell to 2.4%.
Leavitt said Thursday’s inflation report was “not a surprise” and is proof the “Biden administration left us with a mess.”
