From the Moon to Broadband: How DEI Killed American Efficiency

In the waning days of Biden's presidency, one thing has become abundantly clear: the insistence that every federal dollar must pass through a filter of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) has been a colossal drag on American efficiency and prosperity. From the high-minded goals of Build Back Better to the elaborate DEI standards strapped to climate, broadband, and energy projects, we find ourselves staring down the final months of 2024 with little to show for billions spent. The administration's obsession with making sure that every project is stamped as "equitable and inclusive" has ensured that, rather than swift action and progress, federal programs are bogged down in bureaucracy and misdirection.

Consider, for instance, the rural broadband initiative under the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, which was part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) passed in November 2021. This initiative was supposed to be a major step forward, finally closing the connectivity gap between urban and rural America. Instead, what do we have? $42.5 billion allocated, mandates outlined, community benefits plans filed—but as of late 2024, not a single new household has been connected. Rural America is still waiting for those broadband cables to be laid, partly because every step of the process has to ensure that contractors meet DEI criteria. Notably, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had awarded SpaceX's Starlink a contract to deliver satellite internet to rural Americans, but after President Biden instructed federal agencies to scrutinize Elon Musk, the contract was mysteriously canceled. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr noted that Starlink could connect every rural home to the internet TODAY for less than half of the total cost of the BEAD program. Meanwhile, the states are struggling to find contractors who even qualify under the Biden administration's DEI requirements. New companies are being hastily created to funnel the money through—a maneuver that does nothing to genuinely uplift minorities but instead serves as window dressing, inflating costs and delaying progress. The focus has shifted from competence and capacity to superficial characteristics of the workforce. In this twisted view, it is more important that the contractors chosen meet a diversity checklist than it is that they bring internet to underserved communities.

The Electric Vehicle (EV) charging station initiative, officially part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) passed in November 2021, allocated $7.5 billion to deploy a national network of charging stations over the next decade. What do we have at the end of Biden's term? A handful of chargers built across a scattered nine states, nowhere near the promised numbers. In contrast, Tesla has deployed 62,400 charging stalls over the last decade and is adding another 11,000. Experts point out that adding DEI requirements to the project has increased its costs by up to 75%, a catastrophic inefficiency. This isn't hyperbole—by insisting that states and private contractors jump through hoops to ensure every step is DEI-compliant, the administration has actively sabotaged its own ability to achieve anything meaningful.

It is hardly surprising that many of the states are struggling to find contractors who even qualify to work on federally-funded projects. Between the exhaustive documentation requirements, the need to prove inclusivity at every level, and the constant bureaucratic oversight, projects are moving at a snails pace. Rather than seeking out the best and brightest, we are in an era of governmental tokenism. It seems the color of the contractor's skin, or the gender composition of a workforce, carries more weight than whether they can competently install a broadband line or build a functioning charging station.

Let's not forget NASA, once a beacon of American ingenuity and technological prowess, now burdened with the requirement that even a mission to the moon must be "equitable and inclusive." The Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, originally budgeted at $7 billion, has ballooned to over $23 billion, while the Orion capsule, initially expected to cost $6.7 billion, is now projected at over $13 billion. The mobile launch tower has similarly seen its costs skyrocket, from an estimated $383 million to more than $1 billion. These projects are not only over budget but also years behind schedule. Biden's NASA placed the same DEI requirements on each of the awardees, demanding that their subcontractors meet stringent DEI goals—slowing their progress, reducing quality, and driving up costs. Meanwhile, SpaceX, unencumbered by such bureaucratic red tape, has rapidly become the undisputed leader in space launches. In 2024 alone, SpaceX was responsible for over 60% of the world's payload to space and conducted nearly 65% of all global launches. They have launched thousands of satellites, accounting for approximately 60% of all active satellites currently in orbit. SpaceX’s success is a testament to what can be achieved when innovation is prioritized over ideological checkboxes. NASA's ambitions, once the stuff of national pride and dreams, now sound like a checkbox exercise. When did we lose the plot? A lunar mission should be about reaching the stars, about advancing science, and about ensuring that America leads the way. Instead, the Biden administration demands that even this must be subordinated to the altar of inclusivity. The great American venture to explore the heavens now feels like a sideshow for social experimentation.

The cost of these DEI requirements is staggering—both in dollars wasted and opportunities missed. By the administration's own Justice40 initiative, at least 40% of benefits from certain investments must flow to what it defines as "disadvantaged communities." What does that mean in practice? It means additional layers of bureaucracy, additional costs, and a fundamental departure from selecting the most capable entities for the job. It means that the green aluminum smelter that received $500 million in funding isn't just there to develop new technology; it's there to serve social goals that have nothing to do with metallurgy or efficiency. By prioritizing social justice objectives over tangible results, we have ensured that billions in spending are shackled, directed towards arbitrary metrics of community "benefits" rather than what actually works.

The Biden administration's track record is a testament to the folly of letting ideology overrule practicality. The billions allocated in 2021 were supposed to have moved us forward—instead, they have locked us into a quagmire. Projects that should have taken off, providing services and advancing technology, have been mired in delays and cancellations. In 2024, as Biden's term draws to a close, rural America still waits for its internet, EV chargers remain rare curiosities, and our great space program struggles under the weight of non-scientific imperatives.

This insistence on DEI compliance isn't just wasteful; it's fundamentally corrosive. DEI is rooted in Marxist ideology, with the goal of destroying our national identity, undermining the cohesiveness of our communities, and destabilizing our market economy. It erodes the very concept of merit—a core principle that made America competitive on the global stage. The administration has chosen to signal its virtue rather than deliver on its promises. Rather than judging contractors on capability, efficiency, and results, we are saddled with a regime that demands racial and gender diversity as a prerequisite for doing business with the federal government. This inevitably leads to outcomes where the most qualified are overlooked in favor of the most politically convenient.

The Democrats, champions of bureaucracy, have shown once again that they are utterly incapable of managing large-scale projects without politicizing them beyond recognition. Instead of infrastructure that works, we have platitudes. Instead of the best minds leading our efforts, we have virtue-signaling appointments designed to satisfy Twitter (now X) mobs rather than advance the national interest. And as Biden's term limps to its conclusion, the American taxpayer is left footing the bill for failed promises, squandered opportunities, and an economy stuck in first gear.

The travesty of Biden's DEI-first spending policy is one that will haunt us for years to come. As conservatives, we believe in getting things done—efficiently, effectively, and with an eye towards real, tangible outcomes. The Biden administration has given us the opposite: a government that values process over product, quotas over quality, and ideology over accomplishment. The result has been a tragic squandering of American potential, at a time when we can least afford it. However, there is hope on the horizon. With President Trump poised to take office again, his newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, aims to untangle the mess caused by these DEI initiatives. DOGE promises to save money, cut through bureaucratic red tape, and get things done faster and more efficiently. To truly build back better, we need a government that prioritizes capability, competence, and outcomes over feel-good bureaucratic red tape. It is high time to remember Reagan's wisdom: the person who agrees with you 80% of the time is your ally. Let us focus on real allies, real solutions, and real progress, unencumbered by the ideologically driven nonsense that has characterized the Biden years.

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