On Friday, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, stated as one of the initiatives to reform the federal government, he plans to direct billionaire Elon Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency in reviewing the spending of the Department of Defense and the Department of Education.
During a joint press conference held on Friday with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, when asked if he had instructed Musk to review Pentagon expenses, Trump replied, “Yes, I have instructed him.”
“The Pentagon, education, almost everything,” Trump said. “We will investigate all aspects, just like the terrible situation we have just been through, this terrible situation. I guess 97% of the people have already been laid off.”
“It’s very, very unfortunate. You won’t find something similar, but you will find a lot,” Trump continued. “I have instructed him to check the Department of Education, to check the Pentagon, which is the military department. Unfortunately, you will find some very bad things. But I believe, proportionally, you won’t see what we have just witnessed.”
Tech entrepreneur Musk is leading the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a committee aimed at cutting government spending. Earlier on Friday, Trump praised Musk’s work as “excellent,” following controversy over significant layoffs at the U.S. Agency for International Development and reports that Musk’s team had access to sensitive Treasury Department payment systems.
During the press conference, Trump was also asked whether some of the Department of Government Efficiency’s work was about seizing power and if he had instructed Musk not to touch certain things.
Trump replied, “Well, we haven’t discussed so much yet. I will tell him to go here, go there. He has done it. He has a very capable team, very, very, very, very capable.”
“So, I have instructed him to enter the field of education, to enter the military field, as we move forward, to enter other fields. They are uncovering a lot of fraud, abuse, waste, all these problems,” Trump added.