Controversy Surrounds Rehiring of Former Government Efficiency Staffer
Vice President J.D. Vance has called on a government committee to reinstate a staffer, Marko Elez, who recently left his position following allegations of racist remarks.
At 25 years old, Elez was associated with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) until he departed on Friday. This came after the Wall Street Journal revealed his connection to a now-deleted X account known for making discriminatory comments and endorsing eugenics.
Vance expressed his views on X, stating, “I obviously disagree with some of Elez’s posts, but I don’t think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid’s life,” posted the Vice President on the same day. He further commented, “We shouldn’t reward journalists who try to destroy people. Ever. So I say bring him back. If he’s a bad dude or a terrible member of the team, fire him for that.”
Vance continued to argue that young individuals deserve the chance to outgrow “stupid jokes” or problematic views they might hold.
However, many of Elez’s contentious posts were made recently. In September, he wrote statements such as, “You could not pay me to marry outside of my ethnicity,” and “Normalize Indian hate.”
Notably, Vance’s wife, Usha, is of Indian heritage.
In response to Vance’s post, Elon Musk, the billionaire heading DOGE, replied with a saluting emoji and confirmed that Elez would be reinstated.
DOGE, a committee established by Musk and President Donald Trump, aims to identify and recommend federal government spending cuts. The committee is actively auditing several government agencies, despite questions regarding its legal authority to do so.
Elez was previously involved in another incident within DOGE.
On February 1, Elez, along with another DOGE staffer, took control of the Treasury Department’s internal payment system, which contains private taxpayer information and manages trillions of dollars in payments annually.
This breach prompted a public outcry, leading U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly to restrict DOGE’s access to a “read only” status, allowing them to view but not modify or save the data.
The White House has yet to comment on the situation.
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