Musk describes massive cuts to US federal spending and personnel

Elon Musk outlined plans Wednesday for his new role as “efficiency” czar — meaning an attack on federal spending and staffing that would be supported by newly elected President Donald Trump’s executive branch and a conservative Supreme Court.

Writing in the Wall Street Journal, the world’s richest man said he was targeting hundreds of billions of dollars in government spending — including funding for the public broadcaster and abortion rights group Planned Parenthood — and bureaucracy that poses an “existential threat.” to American democracy.

The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX said he, along with fellow businessman and Trump loyalist Vivek Ramaswamy, would work to loosen federal regulations and make major administrative cuts and cost savings.

“We are entrepreneurs, not politicians. We will serve as outside volunteers, not as federal officials or employees,” Musk and Ramaswamy wrote in their most detailed comments since Trump appointed them to head a new Department of Government Efficiency.

Musk said DOGE — a nod to Musk’s support for a cryptocurrency — will create a list of regulations issued by government agencies without congressional approval, which Trump could then declare invalid by executive order.

“When the president nullifies thousands of such regulations, critics will argue that the executive branch is going too far. In effect, it will correct the executive branch of thousands of rules issued by administrative fiat that were never approved by Congress,” Musk said.

He added that a reduction in regulations would pave the way for “massive workforce reductions in the federal bureaucracy,” and said DOGE would aim to cut more than $500 billion in government spending.

“With a decisive electoral mandate and a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court, DOGE has a historic opportunity for structural cuts in the federal government,” Musk said.

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