¶ Overview
- Miller initially thought DOGE had some very exciting ideas and then proudly voted to codify its cuts. He supported the agency even as its cuts hurt Ohio’s food banks, farmers, and fair housing organizations. DOGE also caused mass layoffs, longer wait times and frequent website crashes at the Social Security Administration, hurting Ohio seniors’ ability to access services.
¶ Miller Supported DOGE Despite The Detrimental Impact Its Cuts Had On Ohio
¶ MILLER SUPPORTED DOGE AND CLAIMED HE WAS “PROUD” TO CODIFY DOGE CUTS INTO LAW
June 2025: Miller Said He Was “Proud” To Have Voted To Codify DOGE Cuts In 2025 Recissions Package. According to Max Miller’s Facebook, “I just voted to codify over $9 billion in DOGE cuts that root out waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars. There were no cuts to NASA!”
[Facebook, Congressmen Max Miller, 6/12/25] (video)
December 2024: Miller Said Republicans Were “Very Excited” At The Prospect Of Large Cuts In Government Funding, Even If They Were Skeptical About How Quickly DOGE Would Actually Achieve Those Cuts. According to NOTUS, "Republican lawmakers were thrilled to meet with the leaders of the Department of Government Efficiency on Thursday. […] Tech billionaire Elon Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, the two leaders of DOGE, have said they’ll consider firing much of the federal workforce, abolishing some government agencies and that they may even find $2 trillion to cut from the government’s expenditures. They could take stabs at some reforms through executive authority, if President-elect Donald Trump agrees with their recommendations. But other ideas would likely have to go through Congress. Plenty of Republican lawmakers say they would be happy to see changes to make the government function better and for less money — but they’ve also spent years trying to pass their own efficiency bills and spending cuts, and they know how much of an uphill climb real reform might be. ‘Half of the people in the room were probably very excited, and the other half are in reality,’ Rep. Max Miller of Ohio told reporters as he left the meeting. ‘We have a four-seat majority,’ he noted. ‘Two trillion is a lot.’ If Miller seemed skeptical about the chances of success, he also didn’t sound very impressed with the message in the room. ‘They said it was going to be — the velocity of how quick they were going to move and how, like, I don’t know, how aggressive it’s going to be is going to shock people,’ he said. ‘Something like that.’ " [NOTUS, 12/5/24]
¶ AT THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, DOGE HAD FORCED MASS LAYOFFS, LONGER WAIT TIMES AND FREQUENT WEBSITE CRASHES
One Year After DOGE-Era Cuts Resulted In A 12 Percent Cut Of The Social Security Administration’s Workforce, Social Security Offices Across The Country Still Struggled With Staffing. According to Business Insider, "More than a dozen Social Security field offices are listed as closed to in-person service, instead directing customers to reach out by phone or contact the national 800 number. Now, the list of closures has prompted concerns for the beleaguered agency and its recipients. A federal employees' union memo obtained by Business Insider sheds some light on why offices are closed: Some due to operational issues with their buildings, while others are so small that any understaffing forces them to temporarily shut down. […] The closures come at a tumultuous time for the Social Security Administration and its beneficiaries; the agency shed around 7,000 workers, or nearly 12% of its workforce, during the DOGE era, and has had to temporarily reassign some employees to staff phone lines. While the SSA said these office closures are temporary, staffing issues and a lack of field offices could be an increasing problem for the administration and recipients alike. Some currently-shuttered offices simply don't have enough staff. These smaller offices, called resident stations, are often staffed by just one person and serve low-population areas. Two resident stations in rural Montana and Wyoming are closed for lack of workers." [Business Insider, 4/23/26]
HEADLINE: "Social Security Stops Reporting Call Wait Times And Other Metrics" [Washington Post, 6/20/25]
HEADLINE: "As Social Security Services Are Cut Back, Millions Of Seniors Face Long Drives" [Axios, 4/8/25]
HEADLINE: "Social Security Website Keeps Crashing, As DOGE Demands Cuts To IT Staff" [Washington Post, 4/7/25]
HEADLINE: "Social Security Faces Thousands More Job Cuts Even With Service In Tailspin" [Washington Post, 4/4/25]
CBPP Said The Trump Administration Had Pushed Out 7,000 Social Security Workers. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, "Over the past five months, the Trump Administration has forced the Social Security Administration (SSA) through a radical transformation that threatens to disrupt services for the largely older and severely disabled people who most rely on the agency.[1] The Trump Administration and its so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have created huge gaps in customer service and support by indiscriminately pushing out 7,000 workers to hit an arbitrary staffing reduction target. This is the largest staffing cut in SSA’s history.[2] (See Figure 1.)" [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 6/23/25]
The Social Security Administration Website Crashed Four Times In Ten Days In March Because Servers Were Overloaded. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Field Office Managers At Social Security Offices Had To Answer Phones In Place Of Receptionists Because DOGE Had Pushed Out So Many Federal Employees. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
DOGE Eliminated The Social Security Administration’s System To Monitor Customer Experience. According to the Washington Post, "The Social Security Administration website crashed four times in 10 days this month because the servers were overloaded, blocking millions of retirees and disabled Americans from logging in to their online accounts. In the field, office managers have resorted to answering phones in place of receptionists because so many employees have been pushed out. Amid all this, the agency no longer has a system to monitor customer experience because that office was eliminated as part of the cost-cutting efforts led by Elon Musk. And the phones keep ringing. And ringing." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
Early February-Late March 2025: AARP Said More Than 2,000 People Per Week Had Called Expressing Concerns About Whether They Would Continue To Get Their Social Security Benefits. According to the Washington Post, "Alarmed lawmakers are straining to answer questions back home from angry constituents. Calls have flooded into congressional offices. AARP announced Monday that more than 2,000 people a week have called the retiree organization since early February — double the usual number — with concerns about whether benefits they paid for during their working careers will continue. Social Security is the primary source of income for about 40 percent of older Americans." [Washington Post, 3/25/25]
¶ DOGE’S CUTS WERE DETRIMENTAL TO OHIO
¶ 2024: 179,018 Ohioans In The 7th Congressional District Relied On Social Security Benefits
2024: 179,018 Ohioans In The 7th Congressional District Relied On Social Security Benefits. According to the Social Security Administration, in 2024, 179,018 Ohioans in the 7th congressional district received Social Security benefits. [Social Security Administration, Ohio, 2024]
¶ DOGE’s Cuts To USDA Funding Hurt Ohio Food Banks And The Families They Served
March 2025: Ohio Food Banks Suffered After DOGE Cut Funding For Nearly $1 Billion Worth Of U.S. Department Of Agriculture Programs. According to NBC 4, "Mike Hochron, senior vice president of communications for the Mid-Ohio Food Collective, said the need is higher than it’s ever been, and the government’s move has him worried. ‘Costs for everything are going up,’ Hochron said. ‘This is not the time to be reducing resources.’ The move cuts about $420 million for the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement, a program that helped feed hungry people with high-quality Ohio-grown products. ‘When we look at the possibility of a big cut, that really would have a material impact on the quality and quantity of food that we have,’ Hochron said. Hochron said that just over the last three years, the Mid-Ohio Food Collective received about $3 million dollars in federal funds. ‘What it really helped us to do was to source particularly high-demand products like protein milk, dairy products, eggs, and then high-quality fruits and vegetables, which are the things that our neighbors and our customers told us that they needed most,’ Hochron said. According to Hochron, the program allowed them to distribute close to half a million pounds of food last year alone. Walter Bonham with the Richland Gro-Op said he’s also feeling the impact. He said they started utilizing the program last year and he’s concerned about the abrupt decision. ‘We didn’t expect it to happen in the middle of the season while we were already preparing for the 2025 season,’ Bonham said. Bonham said the network of more than 40 different farmers was able to sell $300,000 worth of produce through the program last year. " [NBC 4, 3/18/25]
- In 2024, Over 40 Farmers Were Able To Sell $300,000 Worth Of Produce Through The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Which Lost $420 Million Under DOGE Cuts. According to NBC 4, "Mike Hochron, senior vice president of communications for the Mid-Ohio Food Collective, said the need is higher than it’s ever been, and the government’s move has him worried. ‘Costs for everything are going up,’ Hochron said. ‘This is not the time to be reducing resources.’ The move cuts about $420 million for the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement, a program that helped feed hungry people with high-quality Ohio-grown products. ‘When we look at the possibility of a big cut, that really would have a material impact on the quality and quantity of food that we have,’ Hochron said. Hochron said that just over the last three years, the Mid-Ohio Food Collective received about $3 million dollars in federal funds. ‘What it really helped us to do was to source particularly high-demand products like protein milk, dairy products, eggs, and then high-quality fruits and vegetables, which are the things that our neighbors and our customers told us that they needed most,’ Hochron said. According to Hochron, the program allowed them to distribute close to half a million pounds of food last year alone. Walter Bonham with the Richland Gro-Op said he’s also feeling the impact. He said they started utilizing the program last year and he’s concerned about the abrupt decision. ‘We didn’t expect it to happen in the middle of the season while we were already preparing for the 2025 season,’ Bonham said. Bonham said the network of more than 40 different farmers was able to sell $300,000 worth of produce through the program last year. " [NBC 4, 3/18/25]
¶ At DOGE’s Direction, HUD Cut Grants To Ohio Fair Housing Organizations
March 2025: Cleveland-Based Fair Housing Nonprofit Sued DOGE And The Federal Government Over Abrupt Cuts To HUD Grants. According to Cleveland.com, "A Cleveland-based fair housing nonprofit is one of four organizations suing the federal government after its grant funding was abruptly shut off last month in what it describes as an ‘unlawful’ action by President Donald Trump’s administration. The Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research, along with three similar nonprofits in Massachusetts, Idaho and Texas, are asking a U.S. District Court judge in Massachusetts to immediately restore their funding. The lawsuit was filed Thursday against the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by tech billionaire Elon Musk. The group is seeking class-action status, as dozens of other fair housing nonprofits were also affected by the funding cuts that were announced Feb. 27 . Such organizations use grant money from HUD to fight housing discrimination and enforce the Fair Housing Act of 1968 in communities across the U.S. The Cleveland organization -- and many others, including one based in Painesville that serves Lake, Ashtabula and Geauga counties -- received a letter from HUD on Feb. 27 notifying them that their funding had been revoked at DOGE’s direction. In total, 78 HUD grants flowing to 33 fair housing organizations were terminated, with many of the grants accounting for a substantial amount of the nonprofits' budgets, according to a 36-page filing." [Cleveland.com, 3/17/25]
- Cleveland’s Fair Housing Center For Rights & Research Had $112,500 Revoked That Would Have Gone Towards Fighting Housing Discrimination, Combatting Racial Discrimination And Intimidation, And Research On The Impact Of Lead Exposure. According to Cleveland.com, "Cleveland’s Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research was slated to receive $112,500 in HUD grants at the time its funding was terminated, according to court records. Executive Director Carrie Pleasants said in a statement that the ‘abrupt’ termination of the grant caused ‘substantial chaos and confusion, not only at our organization, but to thousands of Ohioans.’ ‘It sets a dangerous precedent, leaving countless individuals without the support they need to overcome housing inequality,’ she added. ‘All of Ohio will bear the brunt of this detrimental decision.’ The Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research intended to use some of the canceled grant money to fight housing discrimination against those who pay with housing vouchers, and help voucher-users move around more freely, according to the suit. They also planned to use some of the money to combat racial discrimination and intimidation, and bring more attention to the impacts of lead exposure, residential asthma triggers and other environmental factors. The nonprofit said in its filing that it had not received any prior communication from HUD that it was not satisfying the requirements of the grant. The abrupt cut-off in funding ‘leaves people in perilous circumstances with nowhere to turn,’ the filing said. " [Cleveland.com, 3/17/25]
- A Federal Judge Later Ruled That HUD Had To Restore The Grants To Cleveland’s Fair Housing Center For Rights & Research That DOGE Had Revoked. According to Signal Cleveland, “A federal judge has ordered the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to restore grants to the Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research in Cleveland that had been stopped midstream as part of DOGE cuts. The Fair Housing Center is one of four plaintiffs in national class action lawsuit asserting that HUD couldn’t abruptly cancel fair housing grants at the order of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The judge’s order means that the Fair Housing Center is one of more than 60 fair housing agencies throughout the country that should have a total of $30 million in grants restored. The Trump administration stopped the grants, which were authorized by Congress for fair housing programs, after many of the agencies had already started spending they money on local programs.” [Signal Cleveland, 3/28/25]