Trump adviser and tech billionaire Elon Musk said Monday that he plans to double the size of his staff in the Department of Government Efficiency, which he noted is already working inside nearly every federal agency.
Musk’s comments about DOGE came in an interview on Fox Business as his budget-cutting team has faced growing pushback not only from the courts and congressional Democrats but also from members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet.
Musk said that DOGE has about 100 staff members and that he planned to increase it to about 200.
« We’re trying to act broadly across all departments, so it’s not just one department at a time, » he told Larry Kudlow, a Fox Business host who worked in the first Trump administration.
Kudlow asked whether DOGE was in all federal departments. Musk responded, « Pretty much, yeah. »
Musk’s team initially focused its cuts on a few government offices, such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, but it has since expanded widely. That has prompted lawsuits from state attorneys general and other plaintiffs arguing that Musk and DOGE have exceeded their authority under the law and the Constitution.
Musk spoke about DOGE’s direction Monday despite not having the title of DOGE administrator. The White House has said another administration employee, Amy Gleason, is DOGE’s acting administrator, though it has also said Musk is overseeing the office. Trump has said Musk is in charge.
In the interview, Musk kept up his attacks on Social Security, repeating claims about fraud that have been debunked by The Associated Press. Musk alleged that 10% of Social Security expenditures are fraud, although a report last year from the Social Security inspector general estimated improper payments at less than 1%.
Musk indicated on Fox Business that he did not plan to leave government any time soon, even though he serves in a time-limited type of position known as « special government employee. »
« You gonna go another year? » Kudlow asked.
« Yeah, I think so, » Musk responded.
A special government employee is expected to perform temporary duties for no more than 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days. Musk did not say whether he expects a change in his appointment status.
Musk acknowledged that his sprawling business empire has come under strain since he joined the Trump administration. Shares in Tesla, where Musk is CEO, have declined every week since he went to Washington, and they fell more than 15% Monday. Several Tesla locations have been the sites of anti-Musk demonstrations in recent weeks, and fires have damaged Tesla Cybertrucks in Seattle and Tesla charging stations near Boston.
« How are you running your other businesses? » Kudlow asked.
« With great difficulty, » Musk responded. He then laughed briefly, sighed and took a long pause.
« But there’s no turning back, you’re saying? » Kudlow asked.
Musk pivoted the conversation back to his government role, saying, « I’m just here trying to make government more efficient. »
In another part of the interview, Musk said he believed disruptions on his social media app, X, earlier Monday were caused by a cyberattack tied to Ukraine-based IP addresses, though he provided no evidence.
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