Details about the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) were revealed by its advisor Elon Musk during an interview March 10, following scrutiny from critics questioning the tech entrepreneur’s role in a DOGE-led federal government overhaul.
The department—which includes a team of more than 100 that could grow to 200, according to Musk—is made up of software, information security, finance, and technology experts.
The special government employee said the advisory body is in regular consultation with cabinet secretaries and federal agency heads.
“We’re really helping the department[s] get a handle on things,” Musk told Larry Kudlow on the Fox Business channel.
President Donald Trump recently dismissed anonymously sourced reports published by other media outlets of a potential rift between Musk and some cabinet officials.
“Well, I don’t think there are tensions,” Trump told reporters March 9. “And that doesn’t mean they don’t have a little bit of an argument here and there about something or maybe personal arguments. I think really the cabinet, for the most part, they get along really well with Elon.”
While the president has repeatedly praised Musk’s work, skeptics are pushing back on the administration’s efforts to follow through on Trump’s campaign promise to reduce federal spending and downsize the government.
Some activists have taken more extreme approaches in recent days. Tesla dealerships were targeted by violence in Massachusetts, Oregon, and New York over the past week.
Musk’s social media platform X was temporarily taken down in an attack from hackers on March 10 that he said originated in the Ukraine area.
“We’re not sure exactly what happened but there was a massive cyber-attack,” he said.
The billionaire brushed off the incident and criticisms targeting his involvement in the government.
“Always look on the bright side of life,” Musk said. “I think we’re doing the right thing here.”
Opponents of the reforms imposed by the new administration include some federal employees, unions, and lawmakers. Dozens of lawsuits seek to upend the cost-cutting agenda.
Musk said the department expects to cut more than $1 trillion in federal spending.
Anomalies uncovered by the group include 20 million dead people who are marked as alive on Social Security rolls, and hundreds of millions of dollars in loans provided by the U.S. Small Business Administration to individuals aged younger than 11.
Audits also revealed millions of instances where fake social security numbers or stolen numbers were used, with the fraud estimated at $500 billion.
“We just basically follow the money,” Musk said. “What we’re trying to do is save money for the American taxpayer ... stop payments for things the majority of Americans would agree don’t make sense.”
He said the team started investigating the U.S. Agency for International Development early on because the agency was disregarding the president’s orders. Since then, the foreign aid agency has been mostly defunded and dismantled.
Musk also brought attention to the alleged use of non-governmental organizations to funnel funding to illicit causes like illegal immigration in what he described as a “gigantic fraud loophole.”
Payments made by the Treasury Department, which amount to about $5 trillion per year, are also in question, and DOGE is now requiring that all be coded with congressional appropriation and reason for payment, a move Musk said could save hundreds of billions per year.
Overcoming a $2 trillion federal deficit and balancing the budget is a priority of the administration, he said.
“If we don’t do something about this, we won’t have money for anything, we’ll just be servicing debt,” Musk said. “I just really don’t want America to go bankrupt.”
