President-Elect Donald Trump named Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to head a newly created Department of Government Efficiency, nicknamed DOGE. It will not be a formal government agency, but rather an advisory commission.
If DOGE seems familiar, it shares a name with a famous meme coin that has rallied dramatically in value since Trump was elected, along with all other crypto values.
Musk and Ramaswamy are among the most high-profile Trump surrogates during the 2024 run for office, which Trump won in last week’s election. Musk is the wealthiest person in the world, and Trump appears to be making good on a campaign promise to have him join his administration. His companies, SpaceX and Starlink, have contracts with the US Armed Services, which raises questions about how he will address contracts he benefits from.
Vivek Ramaswamy ran for president during the Republican candidate but presented as a spoiler in debates that Trump refused to participate in. Since dropping out, he became a vocal supporter of Trump, and his appointment to a newly created role is not much of a surprise.
Read the full statement from Team Trump below:
STATEMENT FROM PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP
I am pleased to announce that the Great Elon Musk, working in conjunction with American Patriot Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”). 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 – Essential to the “Save America” Movement. “This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people!” stated Mr. Musk.
It will become, potentially, “The Manhattan Project” of our time. Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of “DOGE” for a very long time. To drive this kind of drastic change, the Department of Government Efficiency will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.
I look forward to Elon and Vivek making changes to the Federal Bureaucracy with an eye on efficiency and, at the same time, making life better for all Americans. Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 Trillion Dollars of Government Spending. They will work together to liberate our Economy, and make the U.S. Government accountable to “WE THE PEOPLE.” Their work will conclude no later than July 4, 2026 – A smaller Government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th Anniversary of The Declaration of Independence. I am confident they will succeed!