President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Elon Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency.
Despite its name, the department is not a government agency. Trump said in a statement that Musk and Ramaswamy will work together from outside the government to provide “advice and guidance” to the White House and will work with the Office of Management and Budget to “advance major structural reforms and strengthen the “It creates an entrepreneurial approach.” I’ve seen it before. ” He added that the measure would be a shock to the government system.
President Trump said the pair “will pave the way for my administration to dismantle the bureaucracy, cut excessive regulation, reduce wasteful spending, and reorganize federal agencies.”
In a post on his social media platform X, Musk promised to document all the department’s actions online to ensure “maximum transparency.”
“If at any time the public thinks we’re cutting something important or not cutting something useless, let us know!” He also promised to maintain it.
Ramaswamy also responded to the announcement of his appointment on the X show, writing: “We will not go easy, @elonmusk,” adding an American flag emoji.
It is not clear how the organization will operate. This could be subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, which sets out how external bodies that advise the government should operate and be accountable to the public.
Federal employees are generally required to disclose their assets and entanglements and divest significant holdings related to their jobs to avoid potential conflicts of interest. Mr. Musk and Mr. Ramaswamy are not official federal employees, so they do not face these requirements or ethical restrictions.
Mr. Musk pushed for the creation of the government’s efficiency division, which he has pushed relentlessly ever since, emphasizing the agency’s acronym “Doge.” The name comes from the expressive Shiba Inu meme and the name of Dogecoin, the virtual currency promoted by Mr. Musk. President Trump said the agency would “conduct a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government and make recommendations for fundamental reform.”
Dogecoin’s value has more than doubled since Election Day as the cryptocurrency market soars on hopes of deregulation under the Trump administration. Tesla stock has risen about 30% since the election.
President Trump said their work would be completed by July 4, 2026, adding that a smaller, more efficient government would be a “gift” to the country on the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Ramaswamy is a wealthy biotech entrepreneur who first ran for the Republican nomination last year. After withdrawing from the race, he endorsed Trump. He told ABC earlier this week that he was having “high-impact discussions” about his role in the Trump administration.
Although he has no government experience, he has been a driving force in cutting costs in the corporate sector. After acquiring a stake in the struggling online media company BuzzFeed, he asked the company in May to cut jobs and hire conservative commentators like Tucker Carlson.
Musk told reporters last month that his goal was to cut government spending by $2 trillion. In fact, experts say these cost cuts could lead to deregulation and policy changes that would directly impact Musk’s group of companies, particularly Tesla, SpaceX, X, and Neuralink. are.
Adding a government portfolio to Mr. Musk’s portfolio could benefit the market value of his companies and other specialties such as artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies.
“Musk has expanded his influence over many federal agencies and is clearly set to play a major role in the Trump White House,” Wedbush Securities equity analyst Daniel Ives said in a research note. ” he said.
But Musk’s appointment was criticized by Public Citizen, a progressive consumer rights NGO that challenged some of President Trump’s first-term policies. “Not only does Musk know nothing about government efficiency or regulation, but his own business regularly violates the very rules he stands to attack,” co-president Lisa Gilbert said in a statement. “
President Trump has made it clear that Musk likely won’t serve in a full-time role given his other commitments.
“I don’t think we can hire him full time, because he’s a little busy with rocket launches and other activities,” President Trump said at a rally in Michigan in September. “He said the waste in this country is insane, and he’s going to get Elon Musk to be the cost cutter.”
