The department wouldn't be a department at all, but an outside group that can likely only make suggestions — unless Trump tries to axe current laws.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency” in his second administration.

Former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will co-lead the newly created department that Trump indicated will operate outside the confines of government.

Musk—the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and owner of X (formerly Twitter)—was quoted in Trump's announcement as saying that DOGE "will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people!"

President-elect Trump announced Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy as the leaders of his new Department of Government Efficiency, aiming to reduce federal waste and bureaucracy.

Defense is the largest area of discretionary spending in the federal budget, and Elon Musk has been skeptical of its contract practices.

It's a policy that has benefited Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO and Trump's newly appointed head of the proposed Department of Government Efficiency. Musk, a vocal Trump supporter and the world's richest person,

The US government spent $6.75 trillion during the US fiscal year 2024, which means a $2 trillion cut by Elon Musk will amount to 32% off from this spend