U.S. Rep. Fleischmann joins new DOGE caucus

U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann has gone DOGE.

The congressman from Southeast Tennessee announced on social media that he will join several other House members in a caucus, or informal group, supporting the efforts of Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who are working together to lead the Department of Government Efficiency under President-elect Donald Trump.

The House caucus will be led by U.S. Reps. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, and Aaron Bean, R-Florida. The Senate caucus will be led by U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa.

“The Delivering Outstanding Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus will work hand-in-hand with @DOGE to eliminate big government waste, fraud, and abuse and end DC’s spending insanity!” Fleischmann said on social media.

Fleischmann, a powerful subcommittee chair in the House Appropriations Committee, was recently listed as the top recipient of earmarks in Congress. In a phone interview, he said he will continue to focus on energy funding.

“I will chair either seven or eight caucuses related to nuclear energy as a whole or environmental cleanup of legacy sites as they relate to the Department of Energy, so that’s going to be my focus,” Fleischmann said by phone. “These other caucuses that I belong to, I will be a member and I will follow them.”

(READ MORE: Chattanooga area Rep. Chuck Fleischmann elected to eighth term)

The Department of Government Efficiency was announced Nov. 12 by Trump to work with the federal government to reduce government spending and regulations. It is not an official department and would have to pass through Congress to be established as one. Its acronym, DOGE, refers to an online meme featuring a surprised-looking dog from Japan.

Fleischmann said Musk and Ramaswamy will be taking a meticulous look at government agencies. He also said that input from the executive and legislative branches of government is required to pass potential changes recommended by DOGE.

‘MY FOCUS’

Fleischmann met with Musk in November and said the two discussed nuclear energy. The congressman said he would continue to chair the House Appropriations Energy and Water Projects Subcommittee in the 119th Congress. Fleischmann wields budgetary power as one of the dozen appropriations subcommittee chairs responsible for allocating government funding.

Fleischmann said he is also a member of congressional caucuses related to sports, zoos and museums.

“For every caucus I create, I go and find a Democrat who is like-minded on that particular issue and say, ‘Will you work with me?'” Fleischmann said. “Will you agree with me on every issue? No. I understand that. But where can we find common ground?”

U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Florida, joined the now bipartisan DOGE Caucus on Tuesday.

“Democrats shouldn’t fear this conversation,” Moskowitz said in a CNN interview. “I think there are ways to improve government, and I’m looking to do that.”

In the television interview, Moskowitz cited his goal to remove the Federal Emergency Management Agency from the Department of Homeland Security and instead change the agency to be a direct report to the White House. He said he would like to see the same changes for the U.S. Secret Service, which is also under Homeland Security.

CAUCUS VS. COMMITTEE

Caucuses, often bipartisan, are informal groups consisting of Congress members interested in working on specific subject areas and are different from official congressional committees. Committees “consider bills and issues and oversee agencies, programs, and activities within their jurisdictions,” according to the House website.

(READ MORE: Bull doge! Dogecoin soars as Trump announces a government efficiency group nicknamed DOGE)

Caucuses do not have the power to issue subpoenas or call witnesses like congressional committees can, Chris Acuff, a political science professor at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, said by phone.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Northwest Georgia, is set to chair a newly announced House Delivering on Government Efficiency Subcommittee under the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, according to social media posts from Greene and U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Kentucky, who chairs the oversight committee.

According to Comer’s post, the subcommittee will “investigate wasteful spending, work w/ @elonmusk & @VivekGRamaswamy to reorganize the federal government and improve efficiency, eliminate bureaucratic red tape, hold the unchecked federal workforce accountable.”

The 119th Congress will commence Jan. 3. Trump will return to the Oval Office following his inauguration on Jan. 20, and according to Ramaswamy on social media, DOGE will self-destruct on July 4, 2026.

“Most government projects should come with a clear expiry date,” Ramaswamy said in the post.

Contact Sarah Dolgin at sdolgin@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6556.