President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will join his administration to lead a proposed new department focused on improving government efficiency, reducing waste, and cutting excess regulation.
“I am pleased to announce that the Great Elon Musk, working in conjunction with American Patriot Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency (‘DOGE’),” Trump said in a statement.
“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies Essential to the ‘Save America’ Movement.”
Trump suggested that the proposed department would create an entrepreneurial approach to government “never seen before” and would send shockwaves through Washington.
The department would have the edict of providing advice and guidance from outside the government, working in step with the White House and Office of Management and Budget “to drive large scale structural reform.”
“I look forward to Elon and Vivek making changes to the Federal Bureaucracy with an eye on efficiency and, at the same time, making life better for all Americans,” Trump said.
“Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 Trillion Dollars of Government Spending. They will work together to liberate our Economy, and make the U.S. Government accountable to ‘WE THE PEOPLE.'”
Ramaswamy, a biotech engineer and former Republican presidential candidate, expressed his enthusiasm for the role, writing on social media platform X, “We will not go gently, @elonmusk.”
Musk, who has publicly advocated for government efficiency, supported Trump’s campaign and echoed the need for immediate spending cuts.
“Either we get government efficient or America goes bankrupt. That’s what it comes down to. Wish I were wrong, but it’s true,” Musk wrote on X, responding to the news.
In another post, he added: “All actions of the Department of Government Efficiency will be posted online for maximum transparency. Anytime the public thinks we are cutting something important or not cutting something wasteful, just let us know!
“We will also have a leaderboard for most insanely dumb spending of your tax dollars. This will be both extremely tragic and extremely entertaining.”
Trump has tasked the proposed DOGE with a goal to make the federal government “smaller” by July 4, 2026.
Musk’s American PAC also posted on X, quoting him as saying that the interest owed on the U.S. defense budget debt is now larger than the defense budget. “This is not sustainable. That’s why we need the Department of Government Efficiency,” he said.
The federal government currently spends over $6.5 trillion annually, with debt-related interest reaching $950 billion this past year, according to Treasury Department data.
Federal employment now totals more than three million civilian employees, with spending spanning areas from social security and defense to infrastructure and education.
When the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) began measuring the number of federal employees in 1939, around 800,000 people were employed by the federal government. This figure tripled to over 3 million by 1943, during World War II.
During the 20th century, this figure fluctuated. It peaked at over 3 million in the 1980s, 1990s, and 2010s, each time under a Democratic president.
Trump initially discussed the initiative in September at the Economic Club of New York, confirming Musk’s proposed involvement at that time.
“I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises,” Musk said in a post on X. “No pay, no title, no recognition is needed.”
Despite Musk’s willingness to forego compensation, his appointment could raise conflict-of-interest concerns due to his companies’ reliance on federal subsidies and regulations.
From The Epoch Times