Moskowitz on joining DOGE Caucus: 'We got to go to where the conversations are happening'

Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) on Tuesday defended his decision to become the first Democrat to join the Delivering Outstanding Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus.

The group aims to be a counterpart to the forthcoming "Department of Government Efficiency," also referred to as DOGE, in the Trump White House.

In an interview on CNN's "The Lead," Moskowitz explained his decision, noting that "most caucuses in Congress are bipartisan" and that it's important for Democrats to participate in important conversations, including about government restructuring and spending cuts.

“The time for staying in safe spaces is over,” Moskowitz said. “We should be able to go in spaces and have that conversation.”

The group is led by Reps. Aaron Bean (R-Fla.) and Pete Sessions (R-Texas) in the House and by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) in the Senate.

Formation of the caucus serves as recognition that President-elect Trump’s DOGE, which will be led by billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, will not be able to slash spending and cut government programs without Congress.

“I joined with a specific focus because I’ve been working on for years, trying to get FEMA [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] out of the Department of Homeland Security,” Moskowitz said, reiterating the priority he outlined when he first announced his decision on Tuesday.

“I think the Department of Homeland Security was a great idea. I think it’s still necessary, but I think over the last 20 years, it’s become too big,” he added.

Moskowitz said that conversation is happening in the DOGE Caucus, and it's incumbent upon Democrats to make sure they're part of the important conversations.

“I'm sure there's going to be things that Elon and Vivek are going to come up with that I'm vehemently going to disagree on, and I will make sure that I'm a loud voice voting against that stuff,” Moskowitz said. “But we got to go to where the conversations are happening.”

“The idea that we’re not going to go to these places and just pretend the conversations aren’t happening is not a way to conduct business here,” he added.

CNN's Jake Tapper pressed Moskowitz on the prospect that Musk could make the government function less effectively, pointing to the rise in antisemitism on Musk's X platform since he purchased it and overhauled its original branding Twitter.

Moskowitz said he has “been a leader” on pressing Musk to address concerns about the rise in antisemitism and has personally written to Musk numerous times about his own antisemitic experiences on X since Musk took over.

“At the end of the day, I think everyone in Congress is of the position that government isn’t perfect,” Moskowitz said. “I’m looking for ways to improve government. I think the American people expect us to find ways to improve government, and in some places that may be shrinking the size of government.”

“I’m looking to have this overall conversation,” he added. “It’s why I joined the caucus, to go there and meet with my colleagues across the aisle. And Democrats shouldn’t fear this conversation. I think there are ways to improve government, and I’m looking to do that.”