The firm National Security Counselors sued DOGE for not disclosing its hiring practices, among other allegations. However, many of those who are part of the “lean team of small-government crusaders” to work closely with the White House Office of Management and Budget, as President Donald Trump promised, are volunteers themselves.

“The ironic part is DOGE is trying to reduce paperwork, reduce the chaos and they are literally saying you are not filing enough paperwork. The issue with DOGE they completely missed. Doge is not a real department. It’s an idea,” Lankford explained on Fox News’s Fox & Friends on Tuesday. It’s an internal conversation within the White House. It’s Elon Musk actually trying to be able to drive a messaging piece to say, if we are going to be better with our tax dollars waste less and spend less as well, then let’s start this idea.”

Lankford said he’d already met with Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy who at one point were going to head the voluntary group. The senator advised them on how to operate. Since their meeting, Ramaswamy bowed out of the group and is speculated to launch a gubernatorial campaign in Ohio soon.

Additionally, Trump appointed his immigration advisor Stephen Miller’s wife, Katie Miller, to DOGE in the weeks after the group was announced. Katie Miller served as former Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary.

The team has a goal to accomplish its work for good by July 4, 2026.