DAVID MARCUS: Elon Musk heads to the backwoods of West Virginia in search of the national debt

PARKERSBURG, W.V – This darling small municipality of 30,000 holds an astounding $36 trillion dollars of debt, but it’s not the people's fault. Allow maine to explain.  

Back successful 1957, the Bureau of the National Debt was placed successful this distant Appalachian metropolis successful lawsuit of nationalist emergency, which presumably meant atomic war. So, portion New York, Chicago ,and DC were mushroom clouded, the national authorities could proceed banking. 

This is why, connected Tuesday morning, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency volition get successful this pleasant hamlet to summation entree to much of the comings and goings of America’s money.

NATIONAL DEBT TRACKER: AMERICAN TAXPAYERS (YOU) ARE NOW ON THE HOOK FOR $36,219,581,958,530.58 AS OF 2/10/25

The existent happening that exists present successful Parkersburg is called the Central Accounting Reporting System (CARS). Some locals told maine is resides successful the basement of an aged gathering successful town. It’s each a small vague and spooky. 

What Musk and his squad privation is entree to the existent numbers, the payouts connected our debt, our collections, what wealth is going where. This is wherever the answers reside. Every azygous day, the 1000 oregon truthful national employees successful Parkersburg way and study connected that debt.

The national Bureau of the Fiscal Service successful Parkersburg, W.V., is crushed zero of our $36 trillion nationalist debt. (Fox News Digital)

On Monday evening astatine the Hotel Blennerhassett, built successful 1889 and inactive an imposing and elegant centerpiece of the area, the impending sojourn from DOGE was already the speech of the town.  

"This is simply a immense portion of this city’s economy," 1 section retired lawyer told me, adding, "We don’t cognize what’s going to hap to it." 

Local Democratic officials person been raising akin alarm bells, arsenic well. Jeff Fox, the Wood County Democratic Party Chair said, "Our assemblage relies heavy connected the employment provided by the U.S. Treasury present successful Parkersburg. The imaginable of DOGE’s involution raises superior questions astir occupation information for our residents." 

Fair enough, but that each Musk’s DOGE squad is seeking is entree to data. There is thing to suggest that the program present is to occurrence anyone, but possibly for Musk’s sometimes overzealous rhetoric. 

And honestly, it is that trolling rhetoric that seems to beryllium starring to the confusion. 

Musk and his squad person taken to utilizing a signature country of the Gen X classical Office Space to explicate DOGE. It is the Bobs, brought successful to occurrence people, interrogate them arsenic to "what they really bash here."

The Congressional DOGE Caucus present has implicit 100 members, Fox News Digital was told (House of Representatives/Getty)

But the constituent of those scenes was not that it was captious that Initech go much efficient, arsenic the tech bros would person it. It was that Peter, the protagonist, wanted much than ratio for his life. That is precisely wherefore helium confused them. 

On the crushed successful Parkersburg, I cannot supply you with a achromatic and achromatic communicative of bully and evil, of graft and honesty. It's much analyzable than that. It ever is. 

There is nary evident crushed to deliberation that Musk’s minions are rolling up to the Bureau of Fiscal Service, close crossed the thoroughfare from the hotel, with a briefcase afloat of pinkish slips. What I saw contiguous was a afloat parking batch of national employees’ bully cars extracurricular the building. These are radical showing up.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

Instead, what Musk truly wants is simply a look nether the hood of national debt, and Parkersburg is perfectly its work station. There whitethorn beryllium morganatic concerns astir delicate accusation contained within, but if President Trump has tasked Musk to suss it out, past he’s allowed to bash that. 

I drove crossed the mountains to Parkersburg successful my spunky reddish Mitsubishi Lancer due to the fact that it’s the benignant of spot I similar to study on. This DOGE involution was icing connected the cake. 

I don’t cognize what, if anything, section absorption volition beryllium to Musk’s DOGE penetration of Parkersburg Tuesday, but I’m present truthful I tin find out.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Our national authorities is astir apt the biggest and astir important happening that has ever existed successful the world. It won planetary wars blistery and cold, it landed connected the Moon, its glory knows nary bounds. 

But each of that was funded successful Parkersburg, West "By God" Virginia, and this week, Donald Trump and Elon Musk volition beryllium going done the receipts. 

Nobody likes an audit, but possibly it's time.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM DAVID MARCUS