New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte takes Trump’s page with DOGE-like commission

CONCORD, NH – The nation’s newest governor is jumping out of the gate by creating a new government efficiency commission that appears to be modeled, to some degree, on a similar national effort by President-elect Trump.

republican Governor Kelly Ayotte of the swing state of New Hampshire, in his inaugural address Thursday when he succeeded longtime GOP Gov. Chris Sununu, pointed to the state’s budget challenges due to drying up of federal funding for COVID relief for states and a drop in business income.

“We’re going to have to find better ways to do things with fewer dollars,” Ayotte said.

The new governor then said: “Since I know there is nothing more difficult than getting politicians to stop spending money, today I am announcing the creation of the Commission on Government Efficiency, or as I like to call it, the ‘COGE'”.

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Ayotte argued that “COGE will make us smarter than ever when it comes to saving taxpayer dollars and finding better ways to serve the people of our state.”

A couple of hours later, Ayotte signed his first executive order, which created the 15-member commission.

In one exclusive interview with Fox News Digital before his inauguration, Ayotte appeared to scoff at his proposal by emphasizing that “we’re looking for new and efficient ways to do things better and serve taxpayers.”

The New Hampshire governor’s decision comes nearly two months after Trump, days after his presidential election victory, took advantage. Elon Muskthe world’s richest person, and former Republican presidential candidate and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to head what he called the “Department of Government Efficiency,” better known by its acronym DOGE.

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Ayotte’s proposal received much applause from state lawmakers gathered at the New Hampshire Statehouse for the governor’s inauguration. Republicans in the November election made big gains as they strengthened their state majorities in the House and Senate.

“I think it’s a brilliant approach,” said Republican Mayor Jay Ruais of Manchester. New Hampshire biggest city, he told Fox News.

Ruais, considered a rising star in his party, stressed that “appointing a commission like this to follow any kind of swelling, I think, is a perfect approach and will certainly be very beneficial to the state government and it will also help us downstream at the local level as well”.

New Hampshire Democrats obviously disagree.

“Governor Ayotte hasn’t even been in office for a full twenty-four hours, and she’s already laying the groundwork for massive budget cuts to the services people depend on. This is all thanks to years of failed Republican policies that defended”. argued New Hampshire Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley.

“Throughout her speech, one thing became clear: Kelly Ayotte is taking a page out of Donald Trump’s playbook,” Buckley said. “Governor Ayotte is following in Trump’s footsteps and heading down a dangerous and costly path for New Hampshire.”

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Ayotte, a former U.S. senator who previously served as the state’s attorney general, defeated Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig by nearly 10 points in the November election. His victory kept the governor’s office in GOP hands.

In his speech, Ayotte praised his predecessor, whose policies he campaigned to continue.

“New Hampshire is moving in the right direction, and no one deserves more credit for that after four terms at the helm than Gov. Chris Sununu. Thank you, Governor,” Ayotte said.

Looking ahead, Ayotte told state GOP legislative leaders, “I look forward to working with you … to bring our Republican majorities together over the next two years to deliver on the promises we made to keep our state moving in the direction correct”.

And Ayotte reiterated a long-standing promise by New Hampshire Republicans that “it’s not going to surprise anybody when I say this: no income tax, no sales tax, not now, not ever.”

But Ayotte also extended an olive branch to Democrats, saying, “My door is always open. Good government knows no party.”

“I’ll be a governor for you, whether you’re a Republican, a Democrat, an independent, whatever you want. Because our state is so much bigger than a party or an ideology,” he added.

And Ayotte, who faced a barrage of attacks from Democrats on the issue of abortion during last year’s gubernatorial campaign, repeated his vow to state lawmakers that “if you send me legislation that further restrict access to abortion beyond our current law: I will veto it.”

Abortions are legal in New Hampshire up to 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Ayotte also made headlines when he announced that he will ban cellphones in the state’s public schools.

Pointing to her husband, Joe, a retired Air Force pilot who flew combat missions over Iraq and currently teaches high school math, the governor said, “Joe and I talk about what you’re seeing in classroom and what his students need all the time.He and the thousands of teachers in our state are on the front lines of our education system to them.

“That’s why I’m announcing today that we will take action to ban cell phones in our schools. Screens are negatively affecting our learning environments, drawing students’ attention,” Ayotte said.

Sununu, in a Fox News Digital interview on the eve of Ayotte’s inauguration, which was his last full day in office after eight years and four electoral victories (New Hampshire and neighboring Vermont are the only states the nation that have two-year terms for governors), praised his successor.

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“Kelly has been a great friend for decades. She’s going to be a great governor for New Hampshire. She’s New Hampshire, born, raised, ready to go, started with a great team here in the state,” Sununu said.

The outgoing governor added that as he leaves office, he is always available for advice. “Anything he can add, he knows he can call and text anytime,” she said.