Jonathan Mendelson
An April addition to the DOGE lineup, Jonathan Mendelson has been part of Nate Cavanaugh’s wrecking crew that visits small independent executive agencies to subvert and destroy them. He has been spotted at the SEC and the USDFC so far, which is concerning considering he comes from a background in venture capital and investment banking. Prior to DOGE, he was an investor in the Silicon Valley VC firm Accel.
Positions
Appointed:
4/09/25
Appointed:
4/09/25
| Source: | DOGE has tried to embed beyond the executive branch. Some targets have pushed back National Public Radio, 5/20/25 |
Detailed To:
4/28/25 likely detailed from GSA
Detailed To:
4/28/25 likely detailed from GSA
| Source: | DOGE targets US foreign aid agency created under first Trump administration Politico, 4/28/25 |
Detailed To:
c.5/02/25-10/31/25 likely detailed from GSA Senior Advisor «title sourced from ProPublica, reportedly not seen at agency for last few months of official station»
Offboarding:
detail ended 10/31/25
Detailed To:
c.5/02/25-10/31/25 likely detailed from GSA Senior Advisor «title sourced from ProPublica, reportedly not seen at agency for last few months of official station»
Offboarding:
detail ended 10/31/25
| Source: | DOGE expands presence at Wall St regulator, sources say Reuters, 5/02/25 |
| Source: | DOGE to leave top US markets regulator, sources say Reuters, 10/30/25 |
Events
4/09/25
Appointed:
Jonathan Mendelson starts at GSA.
Appointed:
Jonathan Mendelson starts at GSA.
| Appointed: | Jonathan Mendelson 4/09/25 |
| Source: | DOGE has tried to embed beyond the executive branch. Some targets have pushed back National Public Radio, 5/20/25 |
4/28/25
Detailed To:
Detailed To:
| GSA? Detailed To: DFC Jonathan Mendelson 4/28/25 | |
| Source: | DOGE targets US foreign aid agency created under first Trump administration Politico, 4/28/25 |
Sighting:
A team of 4 DOGE personnel – Nate Cavanaugh, Jonathan Mendelson, Ethan Shaotran and Marshall Wood – arrive at the headquarters of the US International Development Finance Corporation
Sighting:
A team of 4 DOGE personnel – Nate Cavanaugh, Jonathan Mendelson, Ethan Shaotran and Marshall Wood – arrive at the headquarters of the US International Development Finance Corporation
| Person: | Ethan Shaotran, Jonathan Mendelson, Marshall Wood, Nate Cavanaugh |
| Source: | DOGE targets US foreign aid agency created under first Trump administration Politico, 4/28/25 |
| Agency: | DFC |
4/29/25
Interagency Coordination:
Nate Cavanaugh sends an email to the two remaining members of the CPB board requesting a meeting. He describes a DOGE team at GSA and cc’s several other members of DOGE
Interagency Coordination:
Nate Cavanaugh sends an email to the two remaining members of the CPB board requesting a meeting. He describes a DOGE team at GSA and cc’s several other members of DOGE
| Person: | Jonathan Mendelson, Justin Aimonetti, Justin Fox, Nate Cavanaugh |
| Source: | CPB v. Trump, doc 12-1 Court Document, 5/09/25 |
| Agency: | CPB, DOGE, GSA |
c.5/02/25
Detailed To:
Detailed To:
| GSA? Detailed To: SEC Jonathan Mendelson c.5/02/25-10/31/25 | |
| Position Title: | Senior Advisor, Chairman of the SEC |
| Source: | DOGE expands presence at Wall St regulator, sources say Reuters, 5/02/25 |
| Source: | DOGE to leave top US markets regulator, sources say Reuters, 10/30/25 |
| Note: | title sourced from ProPublica, reportedly not seen at agency for last few months of official station |
5/13/25
Identification:
In an overview of how DOGE has tried to assign teams outside of the executive branch, NPR lists six DOGE staffers at GSA who are involved with those efforts.
Identification:
In an overview of how DOGE has tried to assign teams outside of the executive branch, NPR lists six DOGE staffers at GSA who are involved with those efforts.
| Person: | Jack Stein, Jonathan Mendelson, Justin Aimonetti, Justin Fox, Marshall Wood, Nate Cavanaugh |
| Source: | DOGE has tried to embed beyond the executive branch. Some targets have pushed back National Public Radio, 5/20/25 |
| Agency: | GSA |
c.8/03/25
Interagency Coordination:
SEC leadership meets with DOGE representatives Jonathan Mendelson and Christopher Sweet to discuss using Sweet’s AI tool to identify regulations to cut or modify at the agency. It’s unclear if Sweet is detailed to the agency or just demonstrating the tool to SEC staff. Reportedly, agency staff then used the tool to identify thousands of regulations to cut. The list will then be reviewed by agency leadership and lawyers.
Interagency Coordination:
SEC leadership meets with DOGE representatives Jonathan Mendelson and Christopher Sweet to discuss using Sweet’s AI tool to identify regulations to cut or modify at the agency. It’s unclear if Sweet is detailed to the agency or just demonstrating the tool to SEC staff. Reportedly, agency staff then used the tool to identify thousands of regulations to cut. The list will then be reviewed by agency leadership and lawyers.
| Question: | Fuzz: Date given is “a short time after” the AI task force is created |
| Person: | Christopher Sweet, Jonathan Mendelson |
| Source: | DOGE Is Using AI to Target SEC Regulations for Cutting The Information, 9/01/25 |
| Agency: | HUD, SEC |
| DOGE Project: | Deregulation |
10/31/25
Offboarding:
Jonathan Mendelson ends detailed position as Senior Advisor at SEC
Offboarding:
Jonathan Mendelson ends detailed position as Senior Advisor at SEC
| GSA? Detailed To: SEC Jonathan Mendelson c.5/02/25-10/31/25 | |
| Position Title: | Senior Advisor, Chairman of the SEC |
| Source: | DOGE expands presence at Wall St regulator, sources say Reuters, 5/02/25 |
| Source: | DOGE to leave top US markets regulator, sources say Reuters, 10/30/25 |
| Note: | title sourced from ProPublica, reportedly not seen at agency for last few months of official station |