President-elect Donald Trump named tech billionaire Elon Musk and conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy on Tuesday to head up a new Department of Government Efficiency, fulfilling a campaign pledge to give Musk sweeping oversight of government spending.
Trump said in a statement on to social media that the department will help "dismantle Government Bureaucracy" and slash excess regulations. The name of the agency, DOGE for short, is a reference to a meme and a cryptocurrency associated with Musk.
"This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people!" Musk said in the statement released by the transition team.
On X, he added: "Threat to democracy? Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!!!"
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Musk has said he wants to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, which is more than the discretionary budget of $1.7 trillion. He has provided few details about what he'd like to cut, though he has attacked relatively small recipients of federal money, such as the Education Department and NPR.
Musk has said the cuts would mean "temporary hardship" for some people.
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Ramaswamy has called for mass layoffs at federal agencies, a tactic that could sidestep legal protections that otherwise insulate the federal civil service from targeted political cuts.
Ramaswamy campaigned for president in the Republican primaries on eliminating federal agencies, and his initial targets included the FBI; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Education Department; the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and the Food and Nutrition Service within the Agriculture Department.
Trump said the department would exist "outside of Government," giving advice to those in the White House about overhauling federal agencies. The arrangement would also be likely to allow Musk and Ramaswamy to continue working in the private sector and serve without Senate approval.
Trump said he wanted the department to help deliver "drastic change," and he compared its ambitions to those of the World War II project to develop atomic weapons.
"It will become, potentially, 'The Manhattan Project' of our time," Trump said. "Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of 'DOGE' for a very long time."
Threat to democracy?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2024
Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!!!
He gave a deadline of July 4, 2026, for the department to conclude its work.
TheGovernment Accountability Office, the main federal government watchdog, indicated it would provide any necessary information to the new entity.
“GAO has cooperated and shared information in the past when presidential or congressional commissions have been established to address the federal government’s programs and operations, as well as fiscal and other challenges. We will take that same approach with any new commissions formed and stand by ready to assist the new Congress and the Executive branch," Gene. L. Dodaro, United States Comptroller General and head of the GAO, said in a statement.
"As the investigative arm of Congress, GAO continues to examine how federal dollars are spent and provide lawmakers and agency heads with objective, non-partisan, professional, fact-based recommendations to help the government save money and work more efficiently,” Dodaro added.
Trump's announcement brings together two of Trump's highest-profile surrogates from the tech industry, who have vastly different backgrounds.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is among the wealthiest people in the world and the owner of the social media platform X. Even though he is a newcomer to electoral politics, his super PAC spent more than $152 million to elect Trump and other Republicans this year.
SpaceX has $3.6 billion in contracts with federal agencies this year, according to government data. It's not clear whether that spending is on the table for possible cuts.
Ramaswamy ran for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination against Trump and dropped out in January after he finished fourth in the Iowa caucuses. He's the founder of a biotech company, Roivant Sciences.
Trump didn't immediately provide details about how the two men would work together or who might pay for the operations of the department if it operates outside the federal government.
This story first appeared on NBCNews.com. More from NBC News:
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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
