Yeah. A lot of discussion of various things “costing” or “saving” money doesn’t acknowledge the often crucial distinction between three distinct groups: People whose money is being spent, people to whom it is directed when being spent, and people making the decisions.

Wars don’t “cost” money, for example, from the POV of the people deciding to have a war. They and their friends are getting paid by the war, often in vast quantities.

The money this program is “saving” does not belong to Trump and Musk. They simply do not care whether the treasury’s balance sheet is positive or negative (let alone the taxpayers’). Their priorities are elsewhere.