Trump taps Musk, Ramaswamy to oversee ‘drastic’ changes to U.S. government

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President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he is appointing business executives Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new commission on cutting government spending and regulation, handing an enormous portfolio to the tech billionaire who gave political and financial support to his presidential bid.

In a statement, Trump said that his billionaire ally and his former Republican primary rival will lead the Department of Government Efficiency, an idea championed by Musk. Trump said the department would operate outside of government to drive “drastic change,” while partnering with the White House and its budget office to provide recommendations to slash regulations, cut staff and overhaul federal operations. Musk has adopted the nickname “DOGE” for the commission, a reference to a meme-based cryptocurrency he also touted.

It is not clear how the effort will be funded or whether its recommendations will be approved, because federal spending is controlled by Congress and the White House. Still, Republicans are poised to control the House, Senate and White House, giving the GOP the opportunity to implement at least some of the commission’s proposals – potentially triggering major repercussions for the U.S. government and millions of federal workers.

“We have a fourth branch of government – the administrative state – that our Founding Fathers didn’t envision,” Ramaswamy, a former pharmaceutical executive who ran for president earlier this year, said in an interview. “Removing the excess bureaucracy is going to be good for our economy and for our national spirit.”

Still, some analysts are doubtful much will materialize from the effort. Congress must approve any changes to federal appropriations, and it is not clear if the Musk commission will produce recommendations in time for action by the new GOP majorities. Trump’s statement said the commission’s work must be completed by “no later” than July 4, 2026 – not long before the next midterm elections.

Musk’s promises for the commission’s impact have also been described as unrealistic. During the campaign, Musk called for the commission to find $2 trillion in cuts to the federal budget – a sum far larger than the budgets of the Departments of Defense, Education and Homeland Security combined, which even some conservative budget analysts have panned, including one who described it as “absolutely absurd.”

Musk’s elevation to lead the commission comes amid concerns about his array of personal business interests with the federal government. His companies in the auto and space industries have grown through government contracts and subsidies, and he has long criticized government regulation of his firms. After souring on President Joe Biden, Musk has emerged as a key Trump ally during the presidential election, donating more than $118 million to Trump’s campaign and running his most significant get-out-the-vote operation through a super PAC, America PAC.

Ramaswamy rose to prominence as a candidate in the 2024 GOP presidential primaries. During that campaign, he embraced extreme cuts to the federal government – at one point calling for reducing the workforce by more than 75 percent.

As a business leader, Musk is known for a willingness to make aggressive staffing changes, including slashing more than 75 percent of Twitter’s staff shortly after purchasing the company.

“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,” Trump said in the announcement.

Tech leaders in Musk’s circle frequently talk about the need for new “Manhattan projects,” arguing that the government has fallen behind on innovation in this century. “We will not go gently,” said Ramaswamy, adding that the effort would be bipartisan.

A person familiar with the effort, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe sensitive negotiations, said that details of the organization’s funding would emerge soon. The GOP had talked about reducing waste for many years but had not been effective, the person added, leading the campaign to the conclusion “outsiders with a much more entrepreneurial approach” were better suited to the task.

Some Trump advisers see Musk’s commission as an opportunity to implement long-sought goals to reduce federal spending and regulation. They have pointed to the Grace Commission, a Reagan-era panel that recommended billions of dollars in spending cuts. Under that model, which some Trump advisers hope the Musk plan will emulate, the commission identified hundreds or thousands of examples of wasteful government programs and regulations, and called on Congress to approve the recommendations, backed by the president.

Those efforts, however, are unlikely to meaningfully alter the nation’s growing fiscal imbalance. The federal debt is already on track to surpass its historic highs in the aftermath of World War II, and Trump has also pitched more than $7 trillion in additional tax cuts as president. Citing estimates from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office, some conservative budget estimates have said there are tens of billions in savings available from cutting waste and fraud – but not much more.

The Constitution gives Congress authority over taxation and spending, meaning any federal budget changes recommended by Musk’s commission would have to be approved by the House and Senate. Some Trump advisers have explored novel legal theories for independently changing federal spending law, although those ideas would face legal objections if pursued.

Some Trump advisers have expressed optimism that the commission could be bipartisan and include prominent business leaders with nonpartisan reputations. One GOP official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to speak candidly, said that would be less likely given the choice of Musk and Ramaswamy to lead the effort.