Trump names Musk to 'efficiency' post as team takes shape

WASHINGTON

Donald Trump announced Tuesday that tech billionaire Elon Musk will lead a new U.S. government efficiency group tasked with cutting federal waste, as the Republican president-elect added a series of seasoned figures and hardliners to his incoming administration.

Musk became a key ally to Trump during his campaign, reportedly spending over $100 million to help the Republican win and repeatedly boosting Trump's candidacy on X, the platform he owns.

Trump said Musk and another stalwart ally, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, would lead a "Department of Government Efficiency ('DOGE')" a tongue-in-cheek reference to an internet meme and cryptocurrency.

"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," Trump said in a statement.

He said the department "will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government," a move that could allow Musk to avoid disclosing his financial holdings.

In a post on X, Musk said the department's actions will be published online "for maximum transparency" and will include a "leaderboard for most insanely dumb spending of your tax dollars."

"This will be both extremely tragic and extremely entertaining," Musk wrote.

Trump, 78, is set to make a triumphant return to Washington on Wednesday, meeting President Joe Biden in the Oval Office.

He may also visit the U.S. Capitol where his party has won a narrow majority in the Senate and is poised to retain control of the House of Representatives.

With just over two months until he takes office, Trump is moving quickly to consolidate an extraordinary comeback.

Governments worldwide are scrutinizing Trump's picks for signs of how closely the incoming administration will stick to his promises of an isolationist foreign policy, harsh crackdowns on illegal immigration, and persecution of people he perceives as enemies.