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The logo for electric vehicle startup Rivian is seen on the hood of its new R1T all-electric truck in Mill Valley, California, U.S., January 25, 2020. Reuters

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk told Texas Senator Ted Cruz that he has found several "magic money computers" during his crusade to slash government spending.

Speaking on the senator's podcast, Verdict, Musk described what he means by the term: "You may think the government's computers all talk to each other, they synchronize, they add up what funds are going somewhere. And that they're coherent," he began.

However, he said that is not the case. "They're not totally wrong, but they're probably off by five or 10 percent in some cases. So I call it 'magic money computer': any computer that can make money out of thin air. That's magic money," the billionaire added.

Asked by Cruz to elaborate, Musk said the computers "just issue payments." He added that most of the computers are at the Department of Treasury, some at the Department of Health and Human Services and some at the Department of Defense. The agency he leads has been granted unrestricted access to all of them.

According to the Treasury Department's monthly statement for February, direct spending increased by $29 billion in an inter-annual basis. This is despite DOGE's claim that it saved a total of $105 billion in spending so far.

The increase is mainly explained by an increase in debt servicing, which reached $86 billion last month, and an increase in tax credits and related payments.

Originally published on Latin Times

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