President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday he would tap Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, both successful entrepreneurs, to run the Department of Efficiency — or “DOGE” — a new government agency tasked with making substantial cuts to the federal government.
A statement from Trump called the agency the “‘Manhattan Project’ of our time.”
“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,” the statement said.
The department will work with the White House and Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to government,” Trump said.
He added their work will conclude by July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, calling it the “perfect gift to America.”
Ramaswamy replied to the news in a post on X, saying, “We will not go gently @elonmusk.”
He added in a separate post that given the news, he was withdrawing himself from consideration for the Senate seat left open by Sen. JD Vance’s elevation to the vice presidency.
“And yes, this means I’m withdrawing myself from consideration for the pending Senate appointment in Ohio. Whoever Governor DeWine appoints to JD’s seat has some big shoes to fill. I will help them however I can,” he said.
Musk reposted Trump’s statement, and posted a statement of his own, saying, “Threat to democracy? Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!!!”
Who else has Trump picked to fill posts in his administration?
Trump has announced several other picks so far for his administration, including:
- Florida Sen. Marco Rubio as secretary of state.
- Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as attorney general.
- Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence.
- Author, Army National Guard officer and Fox News host Pete Hegseth as Defense secretary.
- South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.
- Former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe as director of the CIA.
- Florida Rep. Mike Waltz as national security adviser.
- Former GOP presidential candidate and Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel.
- New York Rep. Elise Stefanik as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
- Former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
- Trump campaign manager Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff.
- Former ICE Director Tom Homan as “border czar.”
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is rumored to be Trump’s choice as secretary of state, but Trump has not confirmed this yet.