Ramaswamy Pledges ‘Massive’ Federal Downsizing in DOGE Role
Former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said Wednesday that he and Elon Musk will plan "massive downsizing" of the federal government as part of their work under the newly named "Department of Government Efficiency," or DOGE.
Details of the new department are not well-known, and it's not clear how it will operate. While both Musk and Ramaswamy were tapped to lead the office, it's not clear who will be its head.
Trump wrote in his statement that DOGE would "provide advice and guidance from outside of government" and work in tandem with the White House Office of Management and Budget.
"It will become, potentially, 'The Manhattan Project' of our time. Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of 'DOGE' for a very long time," the president-elect wrote.
And Musk, in a post on X on Wednesday, posted a message from a shareholder in his company noting that his appointment running DOGE for Trump will provide advice and guidance to the new president from outside of government and is limited to 21 months, ending on July 4, 2026.
Both Trump and Musk floated the prospect of setting up a government efficiency office on the campaign trail. Musk became one of the president-elect's most vocal backers, often attending rallies, campaigning across Pennsylvania, and operating his America PAC to register people to vote.
Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur who ran in the Republican presidential primary but dropped out, also became a prominent Trump surrogate and was expected to be tapped to a position in Trump's Cabinet.
In his Tuesday statement, Trump said that DOGE's work will conclude by July 4, 2026, to mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
Federal employees are generally required to disclose their assets and entanglements to ward off any potential conflicts of interest, and to divest significant holdings relating to their work. Because Musk and Ramaswamy will not be formal federal workers, they will not face those requirements or ethical limitations.
Trump had made clear that Musk would likely not hold any kind of full-time position, given his other commitments.
"I don't think I can get him full-time because he's a little bit busy sending rockets up and all the things he does," Trump said at a rally in Michigan in September. "He said the waste in this country is crazy. And we're going to get Elon Musk to be our cost cutter."
The acronym DOGE is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, Dogecoin, which the tech billionaire has been touting since early 2021.
Trump also said in his statement the two will "pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies."
On Wednesday, Trump met with Republican members of the House as well as President Joe Biden as part of the transfer of power. The 2024 election results will be certified by Congress on Jan. 6, 2025, and Trump will return to the Oval Office on Jan. 20, 2025.
