Many of you follow the important work being done by DOGE at the federal level to reduce the size of the unelected, constitutionally unsanctioned agency state. Some of the findings—like the recent $60 billion in 2024 consulting contracts awarded to the top 10 consulting vendors—only highlight how inefficient it is for the government to take money out of the pockets of citizens and spend it with no focus on outcomes or accountability.
What many may not know is that there is increasing emphasis on bringing DOGE-like approaches to the states. What is the point in cutting the wasteful federal Department of Education, for example, and giving the money to the states if the state bureaucracy can waste the money just as efficiently as the federal bureaucracy? Witness the expensive new South Carolina Department of Education administrative offices in Columbia—despite the state being ranked 42nd out of 50 in K-12 education.
In our state, we launched the private DOGESC (www.dogesc.com) effort, recognizing that federal agencies and bureaucracy impact citizens far less than state agencies and local bureaucracies. South Carolina, for example, has 84 thousand regulations, placing us No. 5 in the nation behind California, New York, New Jersey and Illinois.
South Carolina is one of the most beautiful states in the nation with great people. However, we have remained a bottom-10 state in median family income, education and roads, while ranking in the top 10 for per capita fatality rates on our roads, per capita violent crime (based on FBI statistics) and income tax rates—where our tax rate is the highest of any red state.
The federal and state constitutions both call for a clear separation of powers between the three branches of government—legislative, administrative and judicial. This is intended to keep government weak and the citizen free and self-governing within the framework established by the Bill of Rights.
Yet South Carolina is one of only two states where all judges—from the Supreme Court to family court—are appointed and reappointed by the Legislature, removing the independence of the judicial branch and giving a Legislature controlled by trial lawyers power over it. Over the years, the legislative branch has also gained control over many executive agencies through boards and agency management. We essentially have only one branch of government, which is another way of saying we’ve recreated the king.
The first American Revolution was fought to free us from the unilateral power of the king and to create a system of self-governance, where citizens got their rights from God—not the government. Yet here we are again, with a new version of the king. Money and power have shifted from the citizen to the government, forever holding the citizen down.
The DOGESC mission is simple: reverse this transfer of power and money back to the citizen. I encourage you all to visit dogesc.com and follow @dogesc on X to understand how we intend to accomplish this mission.
In addition to establishing a statewide communication network and a ground presence in 14 of the major counties, we are actively working to give citizens a choice in the June 2026 primaries by supporting candidates committed to restoring the three branches of government—and thus returning power to the citizen. We are developing legislation to dismantle the agency state and eliminate the state income tax, returning that money to the people.
Also on the docket are forward-thinking plans for education and roads, and the development of AI tools to catalog and analyze the flow of funds into and out of agencies. But all of this requires the will and desire of citizens who support the DOGESC agenda to get involved. If you believe in the mission, we welcome your involvement.
Reddy or Not represents the opinion of Lucky Dog Publishing owner Rom Reddy but not necessarily the opinion of the newspaper. In keeping with our philosophy of publishing all opinions, we welcome responses, which must be limited to 400 words and will be published on a space-available basis.