LIVE | WATCH: Argentina’s Milei gifts Musk a ‘chainsaw for bureaucracy’

Elon Musk

The newly launched Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — led by tech billionaire Elon Musk and backed by President Donald Trump — is shaking up Washington.

With a mission to slash federal spending, Musk and his team are enforcing aggressive cost-cutting measures, including workforce reductions and agency downsizing.

As legal battles mount and critics question the transparency of DOGE’s operations, African Insider will keep you updated on how this initiative unfolds and what it means for the future of US governance.

Stay tuned for the latest developments.

In a lighthearted exchange that captured social media attention, Argentina President Javier Milei presented Elon Musk with a chainsaw during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington, DC on Thursday.

Musk, holding the chainsaw aloft, referred to it as “the chainsaw for bureaucracy”, BBC reported. 

The chainsaw was engraved with the phrase “Viva la libertad, carajo”, which translates to “Long live liberty, damn it”.

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Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) will have “broad access” to root out previous administration programs at the Pentagon, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Thursday.

President Donald Trump has vowed to slash government spending and has tasked DOGE with carrying out that effort, which has seen Musk deploy the vast powers granted to him to restructure and dismantle federal agencies.

“They’re going to have broad access, obviously, with all the safeguards on classification,” Hegseth said in a video posted on X.

DOGE will work to “find the redundancies and identify the last vestiges of Biden priorities — the DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), the woke, the climate change BS — that’s not core to our mission, and we’re going to get rid of it all,” he added, referring to former president Joe Biden.

The unprecedented Musk-led US government cost-cutting drive has raised conflict-of-interest questions, given that many of the targeted agencies, including the Defense Department, have regulatory oversight or other dealings with elements of the world’s richest man’s businesses.

Hegseth also took aim in the video message at US media reports from the previous day that he had ordered sweeping cuts to the Pentagon budget, saying instead that $50 billion would be spent on different priorities.

“We will move away from woke, Biden-era, non-lethal programs, and instead spend that money on President Trump’s America First, peace through strength, priorities,” Hegseth said.

“It’s refocusing and reinvesting existing funds into building a force that protects you, the American people,” he added. – AFP

Elon Musk has said he would work with US President Donald Trump for as long as he “can be helpful,” as the pair dismissed concerns over possible conflicts of interest due to the tech tycoon’s work with the White House.

“I’ll be as helpful as long as I can be helpful,” Musk said when asked in a Fox News interview alongside Trump if he expected to work with the administration for the president’s four-year term.

Trump has vowed to slash government spending since returning to office last month, with Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) tasked with carrying out that effort.

Musk, the world’s richest person and leading Trump donor, has deployed vast powers granted to him by the president to restructure and dismantle federal agencies.

However, the White House has said Musk is not an official employee of DOGE and has “no formal authority to make government decisions.”

The unprecedented cost-cutting drive has raised conflict-of-interest questions, given that many of the targeted agencies have regulatory oversight on elements of Musk’s businesses.

Trump showered praise on Musk, the head of SpaceX and Tesla, in the Fox interview excerpts aired on Wednesday, calling the billionaire “brilliant,” “honest” and a “very good, solid businessman.”

He also dismissed concerns raised by critics that Musk has enormous conflicts of interest as a major government contractor.

“If there’s any conflict, he will stop it. But if he didn’t, I’d stop it. I’d see if there’s a conflict,” Trump said.

“We’re talking about big stuff, but he’s under a pretty big microscope. I mean, everybody’s watching him.

“If there’s a conflict, you’re going to be reading about it within about two minutes after the conflict,” he said.

Musk said DOGE was publicising its actions on its website and that the transparency would hold him accountable.

“The possibility of me getting away with something is zero percent,” Musk said. “I’m scrutinised to a ridiculous degree.”

Asked about Musk’s official position, Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday that the businessman was a “patriot.”

“So you know, you could call him an employee, you can call him a consultant. You can call him whatever you want. But he’s a patriot,” Trump said. – AFP

US President Donald Trump has suggested allocating part of Elon Musk’s government cost-cutting savings to give Americans direct cash payments and reduce federal debt.

Speaking at an investment summit, Trump proposed using 20% of the identified savings for public payouts and another 20% to pay down the $36 trillion national debt.

“The numbers are incredible, Elon. So many billions of dollars … hundreds of billions,” Trump said.


“We’re thinking about giving 20 percent back to the American citizens, and 20 percent down to pay back debt..

This follows a proposal by DOGE adviser James Fishback, who suggested a “DOGE dividend” that could provide $5,000 to every tax-paying household if Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) saves $2 trillion by mid-2026.

Critics, including government efficiency experts, question the feasibility of such savings and warn that reducing government spending without affecting essential services is difficult. DOGE has claimed $55 billion in savings but has provided limited documentation. Experts remain skeptical about the actual impact of the initiative.

 Elon Musk has expressed interest in a proposal by investment firm CEO James Fishback to issue a $5,000 tax refund to U.S. households, funded by savings from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Fishback suggested allocating 20% of DOGE’s projected $2 trillion savings to taxpayers once the program ends in 2026, Forbes reports.

Musk responded on X, saying he would check with President Donald Trump, later clarifying that the decision rests with Trump.

DOGE, created by executive order on Trump’s first day back in office, has faced criticism for aggressive cost-cutting measures and access to sensitive federal data.

It claims to have saved $55 billion so far through contract cancellations, fraud detection, and workforce reductions. The agency is currently facing multiple lawsuits challenging its authority.

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President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he has ordered the firing of all remaining US attorneys nominated by his predecessor Joe Biden.

“Over the past four years, the Department of Justice has been politicized like never before,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

“Therefore, I have instructed the termination of ALL remaining ‘Biden Era’ U.S. Attorneys,” he said.

“We must ‘clean house’ IMMEDIATELY, and restore confidence,” Trump added. “America’s Golden Age must have a fair Justice System – THAT BEGINS TODAY!”

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In joint interview, Trump outlines Musk’s role as enforcer-in-chief

US President Donald Trump painted Elon Musk as his enforcer-in-chief Tuesday, hailing the tech billionaire’s zeal in implementing the blizzard of executive orders the president has issued since returning to office.

In a joint interview broadcast on Fox News, the two men spent substantial time singing the other’s praises and dismissing concerns that Trump is overstepping his executive powers.

Trump has signed scores of executive directives in the past three weeks, many of which have been challenged in the courts as potentially unconstitutional.

Billionaire Musk, who was Trump’s top donor during his 2024 presidential campaign, was tasked with leading the newly-created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), with the declared goal of rooting out “waste, fraud and abuse” in federal spending.

“One of the biggest functions of the DOGE team is just making sure that the presidential executive orders are actually carried out,” Musk told Fox News.

In the interview, Trump insisted his policies — including a wholesale onslaught on federal institutions — should be implemented without delay and said Musk was instrumental in pushing them forward.

“You write an executive order and you think it’s done, you send it out, it doesn’t get done. It doesn’t get implemented,” Trump said.

He added that Musk and the DOGE team have now become an enforcement mechanism within the federal bureaucracy to enact his administration’s agenda without anyone standing in their way — or else risk losing their jobs.

“And some guy that maybe didn’t want to do it, all of a sudden, he’s signing it,” Trump said.

‘The will of the people’ 

The Fox interview was broadcast just hours after Trump signed a sweeping executive order that sought to extend and consolidate direct White House control over federal regulatory agencies.

The order, which is likely to face legal challenges, would force agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to submit regulatory proposals to the White House for review.

“For the Federal Government to be truly accountable to the American people, officials who wield vast executive power must be supervised and controlled by the people’s elected President,” the executive order states.

Musk found humor in his role as Trump’s executor, describing himself as a “technologist” and donning a T-shirt that read “Tech Support” for the interview.

Musk waved off criticism that he was acting as if he were the US president, saying none of Trump’s cabinet members were elected and that he views his role as facilitating Trump’s agenda.

“The president is the elected representative of the people, so it’s representing the will of the people,” Musk explained.

“And if the bureaucracy is fighting the will of the people and preventing the president from implementing what the people want, then what we live in is a bureaucracy and not a democracy.”

President Elon? 

Musk’s prominent role in the Trump administration has led to public questioning of who is really in charge at the White House, though the Republican leader was quick to dismiss rumors of bad blood between the two.

“Actually, Elon called me,” Trump said. “He said, ‘You know, they’re trying to drive us apart.’ I said, ‘Absolutely.'”

But Trump expressed confidence that Americans will not be fooled by alleged efforts to strain ties between him and Musk.

“I used to think they were good at it,” Trump said, referring to the media. “They’re actually bad at it, because if they were good at it, I’d never be president.”

“The people are smart,” he went on. “They get it.” – AFP

US judge declines to block Musk from accessing data, firing workers

A US judge on Tuesday declined a request to temporarily block Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from firing federal employees and accessing agency data, a victory for President Donald Trump in his bid to shrink the government workforce.

Fourteen Democratic-ruled states had filed suit last week contesting Musk’s legal authority but District Judge Tanya Chutkan denied their emergency request to pause his actions.

“Plaintiffs have not carried their burden of showing that they will suffer imminent, irreparable harm absent a temporary restraining order,” Chutkan said.

DOGE is a free-ranging entity run by Musk, the world’s richest person and Trump’s biggest donor. The billionaire has taken an assertive role in the new administration, with his agency aiming to cut hundreds of billions of dollars in government spending.

His plans have effectively shuttered some federal agencies, sent thousands of staff members home and sparked legal battles across the country.

In their suit, the 14 states claimed that Musk and DOGE lacked statutory authority for their actions because he had not been formally nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

“(Musk) exercises virtually unchecked power across the Executive Branch, making decisions about expenditures, contracts, government property, regulations, and the very existence of federal agencies,” they said.

In addition, Musk and DOGE have gained access to “sensitive data, information, systems, and technological and financial infrastructure across the federal government,” they added.

The 14 states had sought to block DOGE from accessing the data systems of the Office of Personnel Management and the Departments of Education, Labor, Health and Human Services, Energy, Transportation and Commerce, and from terminating any of their employees.

‘Considerable uncertainty’ 

Chutkan, in her ruling, said “the court is aware that DOGE’s unpredictable actions have resulted in considerable uncertainty and confusion for Plaintiffs and many of their agencies and residents.

“But the ‘possibility’ that Defendants may take actions that irreparably harm Plaintiffs ‘is not enough,'” she said.

Musk’s cost-cutting spree has been met with legal pushback on a number of fronts and a mixed bag of rulings.

A different federal judge last week lifted a freeze he had temporarily imposed on a mass buyout plan offered by the Trump administration to federal workers.

In the mass buyout case, labor unions representing federal employees had filed suit to block the scheme masterminded by Musk to slash the size of government by encouraging federal workers to quit.

In an email titled “Fork in the Road,” the more than two million US government employees were given an offer to leave with eight months’ pay or risk being fired in future culls.

According to the White House, more than 75,000 federal employees signed on to the buyout offer from the Office of Personnel Management.

Trump’s executive actions have been challenged in dozens of court cases and the White House has accused “judges in liberal districts” of “abusing their power” to block the president’s moves.

The decisions have come from judges nominated by both Republican and Democratic presidents, including Trump himself during his first term.

Chutkan, an appointee of Democratic former president Barack Obama, presided over the now-abandoned case against Trump on charges of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. – AFP

Elon Musk is not an official employee of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and has “no formal authority to make government decisions”, according to a White House court filing.

The world’s richest man is widely seen as the de-facto head of DOGE, created by US President Donald Trump, which has sought drastically to reduce government spending including with thousands of job cuts.

Trump had announced in November that “the Great Elon Musk… will lead the Department of Government Efficiency (‘DOGE’).”

According to the filing on Monday by Joshua Fisher, director of the Office of Administration, Musk “is an employee of the White House… as a non-career Special Government Employee” and a “Senior Advisor to the President.”

“Like other senior White House advisors, Mr. Musk has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself. Mr. Musk can only advise the President and communicate the President’s directives,” Fisher said.

“The U.S. DOGE Service is a component of the Executive Office of the President. The U.S. DOGE Service Temporary Organization is within the U.S. DOGE Service. Both are separate from the White House Office,” he said in the filing.

“Mr. Musk is an employee of the White House Office. He is not an employee of the U.S. DOGE Service or U.S. DOGE Service Temporary Organization. Mr. Musk is not the Temporary Administrator,” he added.

Fisher’s filing was made in a case brought against Musk by 14 US states, including New Mexico.

In a joint interview with Musk due to be broadcast on Fox News later on Tuesday, Trump took aim at critics saying that the Tesla founder was the one running the White House.

“I think nobody in history has ever gotten more bad publicity than me… But you know what I have learned Elon? That people are smart, they get it,” Trump said in an excerpt of the interview.

Musk added: “Yeah they do actually.” – AFP

US judge refuses to block Musk’s DOGE from student data: court order

A US judge temporarily refused on Monday to block Elon Musk’s government efficiency team from accessing Education Department student data, in a minor legal victory for the world’s richest man in his blitz on public spending.

The drive by Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to slash outgoings deemed wasteful or contrary to US President Donald Trump’s policies has run up against multiple legal challenges.

The University of California Student Association had sought to block DOGE from accessing students’ data including social security numbers, loans and tax information.

But federal Court Judge Randolph D. Moss said in his order on Monday that potential harm to students was “entirely conjectural” and that their lawsuit “provides no evidence beyond sheer speculation” that Musk’s team would “misuse or further disseminate this information”.

The order allows both sides time to gather more evidence about Musk’s handling of the data, before Judge Moss rules on whether to allow the lawsuit to advance.

DOGE is not an official government department but has sought to access data from several federal bodies.

The Tesla, SpaceX and X chief ran into controversy this month when he and his team tried accessing sensitive Treasury Department data.

An internal assessment from the Treasury called the DOGE team’s access to federal payment systems “the single biggest insider threat the Bureau of the Fiscal Service (BFS) has ever faced,” US media reported.

Meanwhile the Social Security Administration chief quit on Monday over DOGE’s requests to access Social Security recipient information, US media reported citing unnamed sources. – AFP

A White House court filing clarifies that Elon Musk is a senior adviser to President Donald Trump but has no formal decision-making authority in the administration.

Despite leading efforts to reduce government waste, Musk is not an employee of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and cannot make official government decisions, Reutersreports.

The filing, signed by White House official Joshua Fisher, was submitted in response to a case against Musk by the State of New Mexico.

Since Trump’s second term began, DOGE has carried out major government reforms, including mass job cuts, with Musk playing a key advisory role.

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The US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has announced a $10 million cut in funding for Mozambique’s male circumcision programme, part of broader cuts to 15 health support initiatives in Africa, Asia, and Europe.

This follows Musk’s previous controversial suspension of $50 million in funding for HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in Gaza.

The cuts, which include critical health services such as HIV/AIDS care, have raised concerns in Mozambique, where government officials warned that the withdrawal of US aid will negatively impact healthcare programs, including the supply of medicines and the availability of health professionals.

The Mozambican government is engaging in discussions with the US to mitigate the impact and explore alternative funding sources.

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Elon Musk has revealed data suggesting that millions of deceased or non-existent Americans are still listed as eligible for Social Security benefits.

According to a chart he posted, the Social Security Administration (SSA) records include over 20 million people aged 100 and above, with some entries claiming individuals as old as 360 years.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk oversees, is investigating this as a major case of government fraud.

Musk criticised the SSA for having 60 million more people in its database than the total US population, raising concerns about massive financial waste, Daily Mail reported.

While the exact number of fraudulent payments is unknown, DOGE has pledged to investigate. Musk suggested this could be “the biggest fraud in history” and vowed to target the SSA for cost-cutting reforms.

@wffnews Vampires or Fraud⁉️🧛🧛‍♀️ #greenscreen #news #fyf #fyp #foryou #foryoupage ♬ original sound – WFF News

This follows Musk’s broader efforts to eliminate government inefficiencies under President Donald Trump’s administration, including dismantling USAID, cutting federal contracts, and shutting down diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs.

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Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has raised concerns by requesting access to the US tax office’s Internal Revenue Service (IRS) system, which contains sensitive financial data on millions of Americans.

The request, which includes access to the Integrated Data Retrieval System (IDRS), would allow DOGE officials to view taxpayer accounts, a privilege usually tightly controlled, AFP reports.

Privacy experts and government officials have expressed alarm, warning that granting access could compromise taxpayer security and increase risks like identity theft.

The request has not yet been approved, but it has sparked widespread concern over the potential dangers of such access.

The White House maintains that DOGE aims to address waste and fraud within the system.

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The Trump administration has reversed its decision to lay off hundreds of federal employees working on nuclear weapons programs, causing confusion among staff and raising concerns from experts.

Around 350 employees from the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) were initially fired in a cost-cutting move by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, AP reports.

Many were working on critical nuclear issues, including warhead reassembly and managing radioactive waste sites.

The firings affected key staff members, including those at sensitive nuclear sites, raising fears about the potential impact on national security, the report said.

The acting NNSA director later rescinded the firings for most employees, except for 28, amid backlash from lawmakers and experts, warning the cuts could undermine US nuclear security and stability.

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Mass protests erupted at Tesla showrooms across the U.S. as demonstrators demanded the shutdown of Elon Musk’s car empire, linking his aggressive government downsizing through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to job losses.

Organised online under #TeslaTakedown and #TeslaTakeover, the protests accused Musk of using federal cuts to fund his businesses.

International backlash followed, with activists in Germany and the UK projecting controversial images of Musk onto Tesla’s Berlin factory.

Some protests turned violent, with arson attempts in Oregon and Colorado, and a Tesla showroom in The Hague vandalized. Tesla stock dropped amid the controversy but later partially recovered.

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Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team is attempting to access a broad range of US taxpayer data, raising privacy concerns among Democratic lawmakers.

While DOGE has not yet accessed the data, its efforts have sparked criticism, with Rep. Gregory Meeks arguing that an unelected figure like Musk should not have such access.

In January, DOGE gained entry to the Treasury’s payment system, leading to the resignation of a senior civil servant who opposed the move. Attorneys general from 19 states and several labor unions have since filed lawsuits to block DOGE’s access, The Japan Times reports.

Senate Democrats have also accused Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent of lacking transparency about DOGE’s involvement in federal payment systems.

Meanwhile, Musk’s team has begun terminating employees at the U.S. Digital Service (USDS), which was recently rebranded as the U.S. DOGE Service.

Over a dozen staffers were dismissed, citing President Trump’s executive order as the reason. Remaining employees have been ordered to return to in-person work by April 15.

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Elon Musk’s government downsizing team, DOGE, will visit the FAA’s Air Traffic Control command center in Virginia on Monday as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to reform the system.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the visit, saying DOGE personnel will assess the current system and explore modernisation improvements, Reutersreports.

The Trump administration recently excluded air traffic controllers from a government incentive program to quit, and the FAA fired several hundred probationary employees, which unions argue will increase workload and strain an already understaffed system.

Musk defended the visit, stating that air travel safety is non-partisan and that SpaceX engineers will contribute to improvements. However, Senator Maria Cantwell has called for Musk to be barred from FAA reforms, citing conflicts of interest due to past SpaceX fines.

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Trump and Elon Musk’s campaign to slash the US bureaucracy has resulted in over 9,500 federal job cuts, primarily targeting probationary employees across departments like Interior, Energy, and Veterans Affairs.

An additional 75,000 workers have taken buyouts, amounting to about 3% of the civilian workforce, Reutersreports.

The cuts, aimed at reducing government spending, have sparked bipartisan concerns, with Democrats arguing Trump is overstepping legislative authority.

Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (Doge) has also targeted civil service protections, foreign aid, and agencies like USAID and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Some cuts have raised alarm, including layoffs at wildfire prevention programs and the IRS ahead of tax season. Federal judges have blocked or delayed some firings, particularly in nuclear security and consumer protection.

Critics argue the cuts prioritise deregulation and corporate interests over public service, with unions suing to halt Musk and Trump’s aggressive downsizing.

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Elon Musk, working closely with the Trump administration, is leading deep cuts to US government agencies through an unofficial committee called the “Department of Government Efficiency” (Doge).

Musk has targeted departments like USAID, Education, and the EPA, while promoting artificial intelligence and private sector involvement in federal programmes.

Tech and defence companies, including Musk’s own SpaceX, stand to benefit from these changes, The Guardianreports. 

Critics warn of ethical conflicts, as Trump has removed government watchdogs, potentially allowing Musk to influence policies and contracts without oversight, the report says.

Watchdog groups and unions have filed lawsuits, but Musk’s role in government remains largely unchecked.

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Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has scrapped a $21 million US taxpayer-funded grant aimed at influencing voter turnout in India, along with other foreign aid projects totaling hundreds of millions.

The cuts, part of a broader effort to curb “questionable” overseas spending, included funding for political initiatives in Bangladesh, gender equality programs, and biodiversity conservation, NDTV World reported.

India’s ruling BJP criticised the now-cancelled grant as “external interference” and accused foreign entities, including George Soros, of influencing Indian elections.

Meanwhile, speculation continues over US involvement in Bangladesh’s recent political upheaval following the ousting of former PM Sheikh Hasina.

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A federal judge has ruled in favour of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) by allowing it to access sensitive data from three federal agencies, rejecting a temporary block requested by unions and nonprofits.

Judge John Bates acknowledged concerns over DOGE’s ambiguous agency status but upheld its authority to detail staff under the Economy Act, Fox Newsreported.

Critics fear DOGE’s access to financial and medical records could compromise privacy, especially regarding investigations into Musk-owned companies.

Meanwhile, a separate ruling extended a block on DOGE’s access to Treasury Department payment systems amid legal challenges from state attorneys general.

Donald Trump has mocked what he said were media depictions of Elon Musk as the real power in the White House, saying attempts to drive a wedge between himself and the tech billionaire have failed.

“They do it all the time,” the US president says in excerpts posted Saturday from a Fox News interview to be aired Tuesday.

Speaking as if in a news anchor’s voice, Trump went on, “We have breaking news: Donald Trump has ceded control of the presidency to Elon Musk. President Musk will be attending a cabinet meeting tonight…”

The Republican president is famously prickly about being outshone by anyone in his entourage, and there has been widespread speculation that Musk’s high profile could lead to his downfall.

The South African-born Musk, while nominally just the head of a new “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE), has taken on extraordinarily broad powers in identifying what he says are areas of waste and then moving quickly to cut jobs and spending. – AFP

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Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) held its first known meetings at the Pentagon on Friday, as the US military braces for potential multi-billion-dollar budget cuts under President Donald Trump’s government downsizing plan, Reuters reports.

Trump has tasked Musk with uncovering “hundreds of billions” in fraud and waste at the Defence Department, though critics argue Musk lacks the expertise to overhaul the military and warn that his efforts could compromise classified programmes, the report says.

Despite concerns, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has reassured the public that cuts will not weaken US military capabilities.

Meanwhile, Musk’s Pentagon contracts with SpaceX have raised conflict of interest questions.

With the Pentagon’s budget nearing $1 trillion, DOGE’s impact on defence spending remains a major point of contention.

 

Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner announced the launch of a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) task force aimed at eliminating waste in the agency’s spending.

Turner made the announcement on Thursday.

The task force, composed of HUD employees, will regularly review expenditures and provide recommendations.

This initiative aligns with President Trump’s executive order on government efficiency, which established a presidential advisory committee led by Elon Musk and mandated each federal agency to form a DOGE team.

HUD’s task force will focus on ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently in tribal, rural, and urban communities across the U.S.

Trump orders US diplomats to speak with ‘one voice’

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday ordered the “reform” of the US diplomatic corps, effectively curtailing any dissent against his policies, as he continues his vast overhaul of the federal government.

In an executive order, Trump said that the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, will “reform the Foreign Service and the administration of foreign relations to ensure faithful and effective implementation of the President’s foreign policy agenda”.

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Musk’s DOGE team raises major cyber security concerns

Young engineers deployed across the US government as part of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have triggered alarm throughout Washington’s security establishment.

Never before has a group of unvetted and inexperienced outsiders gained such access to the nerve centre of the US government, according to security experts.

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US judge lifts temporary freeze on Trump admin buyout plan

A US judge on Wednesday lifted his freeze on a buyout plan offered to federal workers, handing President Donald Trump a victory in his efforts to drastically slash the government workforce.

US District Judge George O’Toole, who had temporarily paused the plan last week, lifted his restraining order on the mass buyout offer.

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Compiled by Betha Madhomu

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