Senators had a lot of questions yesterday for Frank Bisignano, the president's nominee for Social Security commissioner — but hovering over it all was the specter of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.

Why it matters: Social Security might be one of the few federal agencies targeted by Musk that is viewed as essential on both sides of the aisle, but it is facing a moment of DOGE-driven disruption that advocates and former officials warn could break the system.

• "It's hard to overstate the importance of Social Security," said Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), who chairs the finance committee.

Catch up quick: Bisignano, a Wall Street veteran, is the CEO of financial technology firm Fiserv.

• At yesterday's confirmation hearing, he portrayed himself as something of a crisis manager-slash-corporate fixer: "I will make the agency a premier services organization, as I have done multiple times with other institutions throughout my career."

Reality check: While Bisgnano clearly knows how to drive operations in the private sector, advocates point out that Social Security is a different beast.

• Some inefficiencies are baked into the system, which will make it hard for Bisignano to follow through on some of his plans to drive efficiency.

Zoom in: At the hearing, unlike President Trump and Musk, Bisignano didn't repeat debunked information about the program. Instead, he used real agency stats, like its less-than-1% error rate, which he said was too high.

• When asked if Social Security is a Ponzi scheme, as Musk has stated, Bisignano wouldn't say yes or no, only that the program is "a promise to pay."
• The only time he came close to criticism was when he was asked about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's comment that only fraudsters would complain if they missed a check: "I don't think anyone would appreciate not getting their Social Security check on time," Bisignano said.

Social Security should "meet beneficiaries where they want to be met," he said repeatedly — whether that's in-person, on the Internet or over the phone.

• Yet, he didn't address the cuts to phone service that are set to take effect in less than a week.
• The dissonance "was confusing to me," said Kathleen Romig, a former analyst and senior adviser at the agency, who is now with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

What's next: Bisignano is likely to be confirmed. The only real question was one he mostly ducked: Will he continue to make changes at DOGE's behest or course-correct?

• In February, he told CNBC he's "fundamentally a DOGE person."

When asked by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) what grade he'd give DOGE, he did not answer.

• Instead, Bisignano appeared to throw acting commissioner Lee Dudek under the bus: "I don't know if this is a DOGE issue; I think we have a leadership issue."
• Dudek has said repeatedly that DOGE is directing his decisions.

What they're saying: "I was personally not reassured," said Martha Shedden, president of the National Association of Registered Social Security Analysts, a group for those who help Americans navigate benefits claims.

The bottom line: The whole hearing turned into a bit of a DOGE dodge.

One corporate buzzword came up a lot during the hearing: AI.

Why it matters: Just like a private sector CEO, Bisignano appears to believe in the magic of artificial intelligence.

• "One of the greatest efficiency opportunities we have is using artificial intelligence," he said yesterday. "That doesn't mean we use it for answering the phone. It means we use it to learn how to do our work better. "

Where it stands: A push to use more AI tools was already underway in the previous administration, and the agency has been using versions of AI for years.

• Advocates also have some privacy concerns — already flaring over DOGE's data access — amid worries that AI would be used to replace the humans tasked with talking to beneficiaries about complicated issues.

Zoom in: Bisignano said AI doesn't need to be customer-facing, like a chatbot, but could help staffers work more efficiently.

Zoom out: Social Security has notoriously bad customer service; the 20+ minute wait time to get a human to answer a call came up repeatedly yesterday.

• AI could help. It's been found to boost productivity inside call centers, per a 2023 study from well-regarded researchers at Stanford and M.I.T. — not necessarily by automating call answering, but by helping agents get information faster while they're working.

Reality check: At the moment, the agency's problems seem to be less about moving fast on AI and more about the impact of huge cuts and fast-paced policy changes.

So much for the Trump bump: An index that measures small business owners' confidence fell nearly 7 points in the first quarter, erasing last year's post-election surge.

Why it matters: The index, published today by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is a sign of just how much tariff worries are weighing on the business world right now.

By the numbers: Researchers surveyed 755 small business owners and operators who run companies with 500 or fewer people.

• The index fell to 62.3 in the first quarter, down from 69.1 last quarter, and the exact same level as this time last year. (A higher score indicates more positive sentiment.)

Between the lines: Overwhelmingly, inflation was owners' top concern.

• 58% said inflation is their biggest challenge, the highest level since they first asked in 2021 — even as the rate of price growth is well off the highs seen three years ago.

What they're saying: "There was tremendous optimism that the election would sweep in measures and policies that would lower costs," says Tom Sullivan, vice president of small business policy at the Chamber of Commerce.

• "Not only do small businesses not believe that's happened, but the uncertainty, specifically around tariffs, has led [them] to believe that inflation isn't going down."

The big picture: Small business owners are hardly alone here — CEOs of major companies also saw a drop in confidence in the first quarter.

• Regular folks are also showing signs of anxiety. Consumer confidence fell for the fourth straight month, per data from The Conference Board out yesterday.

Reality check: This is a pretty negative crew.

• Only 29% say the economy is in good health — that's roughly in line with the 32% who said the same last year, when the economy was in pretty good health.

The bottom line: For now, it looks like we're watching Vibecession 2: Return of the Bummer.