Elon Musk will no longer be a part of the government, according to Donald Trump, president of the United States.
Trump praised Musk for his leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a program designed to reduce federal bureaucracy and spending, while speaking from the Oval Office on Friday.
Elon has worked tirelessly to lead the most extensive and profound government reform program in recent memory, according to Trump.
He attributed Musk to “a colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington” and called his service “unmatched in modern history.”
The president, however, also assured reporters that DOGE would continue its work even after Musk left.
According to Trump, “DOGE is] helping to detect fraud, reduce waste, and modernize broken and out-of-date systems” under Elon’s guidance.
The two men’s joint appearance comes as they try to soften reports of a growing rift, particularly after Musk criticized Trump’s signature budget bill on CBS News. Additionally, it coincides with a report from the New York Times claiming that Musk has experienced alopecia and personal turmoil behind the scenes.
During his Oval Office visit, Musk declined to comment on the Times report. Additionally, he avoided making comments about rumors that his departure was related to Tesla’s stock prices falling.
He instead pointed out that without complying with stricter disclosure and ethics requirements, he cannot work for the Trump administration for more than 130 days.
He also made a point of promoting his work with DOGE and voicing his opposition to Trump’s policies on the left.
Musk, who was clad in a black T-shirt with the phrase “The Dogefather,” written in the style of the gangster film The Godfather, said, “This is not the end of DOGE, but rather the beginning.” “DoGE will only become stronger over time,” said the team’s manager.
Trump, however, made it clear that his friendship with the billionaire, who was a staunch supporter of his re-election campaign in 2024, would continue.
“Elon is not departing,” really. According to Trump, “he’s going to be back and forth.”
Uncertain accounting
Despite White House assertions about its efficacy, DOGE’s cost-savings rate has remained unclear.
The panel claimed on Friday that it had saved an estimated $ 175 billion in savings from “asset sales, contract/lease cancellations and renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletions, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings, and workforce reductions.”
However, DOGE’s accuracy and method have been repeatedly questioned. Less than half of the claimed figure is actually added up using the only accounting that was made available to the public.
The actual amount is much lower, according to a Reuters report released on Friday. Using US Treasury summaries, Reuters discovered that only $ 9 billion in federal spending had been reduced, despite the fact that some savings may take longer to be reflected in the Treasury Department’s data.
Despite what Musk originally intended, all of those figures fall far short of Musk’s original goal of saving $2 trillion.
When questioned about the discrepancy on Friday, Musk reaffirmed that saving $1 trillion would continue to be a long-term goal.
He said, “I’m confident that we’ll see a trillion dollars of savings and a trillion dollars of waste and fraud reduction.”
However, some have questioned whether DOGE will maintain its vigor after Musk leaves.
With the implementation of sweeping changes to the federal government, Musk and DOGE have long drawn public criticism. Organizations like the US Agency for International Development (USAID) have seen their funding and staffing cut since Trump began his second term as president in January.
Employees, contractors, labor organizations, and state officials have filed lawsuits to stop DOGE’s efforts, with varying degrees of success.
There are also rumors that Musk and members of Trump’s cabinet engaged in verbal altercations after Musk leaves.
Tesla dealership protests have spread all over the country as a result of Musk’s foray into politics. In the first three months of the year, Tesla’s profits dropped by 71 percent, with shareholders calling for Musk’s return to work.
When a reporter inquired whether Musk’s time in the government was “worth it,” he was cautious. He stated that DOGE had become viewed as a “boogeyman” and was at fault for any attempts to reform the federal government.
He reaffirmed his commitment to serving as the president’s “friend and adviser” and said it was worthwhile.
Source: Aljazeera
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