As the Trump administration undertakes sweeping moves to revamp the federal government, AP’s Washington news and investigative teams have been closely collaborating to examine the impact.
That work paid off with two major scoops on Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
In one, Ryan Foley revealed that nearly 40% of contracts canceled by DOGE would not actually save the government any money.
The other scoop, delivered by Brian Slodysko and Byron Tau, uncovered that more than 20 DOGE employees resigned en masse rather than use their technical expertise to “dismantle critical public services.”
The stories landed within hours of each other Tuesday and were widely cited by major news organizations.
To assess savings linked to DOGE, Foley analyzed a database of more than 1,100 canceled contracts that the agency had posted as evidence of its impact. He spotted a trend: 40% of the contracts had already been completed and paid for, meaning their cancellation did not save taxpayers any money. He turned around an in-depth report within days. The story was widely read online, shared on Reddit forums, and featured on MSNBC.
The DOGE resignation story stemmed from deep source work in Washington. Slodysko learned about the planned resignations through a longtime source and confirmed the details the next day, obtaining the employees’ joint resignation letter.
The resigning employees sharply criticized DOGE staffers appointed by Musk, saying they lacked the technical expertise for the job and appeared to have been hired based on their admiration for the billionaire entrepreneur rather than their qualifications.
An interview conducted by video journalist Rodrique Ngowi with a fired engineer helped round out the report. The story gained widespread attention, cited by major competitors including The New York Times, ABC News, and NPR. Members of Congress also referenced the report, and Musk himself criticized it on his social media platform, X.
The judges praised the stories for delivering exclusive angles on a highly competitive subject, offering independent analysis and a broad perspective.
For landing these scoops in an intense news cycle, Ryan J. Foley, Brian Slodysko, and Byron Tau win this week’s Best of AP — Second Winner.
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