Nov. 12 (UPI) — President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead his administration’s new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to end “government waste” and “slash excess regulations.”
“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 in a statement Tuesday night.
“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 added.
Musk, the world’s wealthiest person who owns SpaceX, Tesla and the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, responded to the announcement in a post on X.
“Threat to democracy?” Musk queried. “Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!”
“This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in government waste, which is a lot of people,” Musk added. Musk, who endorsed Trump and joined his 2024 campaign, has said he would quickly work to eliminate $2 trillion from the federal budget.
In response to Trump’s appointment, Ramaswamy — a biotech engineer who challenged Trump in the Republican presidential primary this year — made his own announcement Tuesday night in a post on X.
“And yes, this means I’m withdrawing myself from consideration for the pending Senate appointment in Ohio. Whoever Gov. [Mike] DeWine appoints to JD Vance’s seat has some big shoes to fill. I will help them however I can,” Ramaswamy wrote. Ramaswamy was one of several contenders for Vance’s Senate seat after he became vice president-elect last week.
In his statement Tuesday night, Trump outlined the duties of DOGE that will drive “drastic change” and make government operate like a business.
“The Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management and Budget to drive large-scale structural reform and create an entrepreneurial approach to government never seen before,” Trump said.
“Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 trillion of government spending. They will work together to liberate our economy and make the U.S. government accountable to ‘We the People,'” Trump added.
The president-elect also announced DOGE’s work “will conclude no later than July 4, 2026.”
“A smaller government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th anniversary of The Declaration of Independence,” Trump said. “I am confident they will succeed!”
