Good afternoon. Donald Trump has recruited Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, to make dramatic cuts to the US public service, announcing the establishment of a so-called Department of Government Efficiency (or Doge, an apparent reference to Musk’s favourite meme-turned-cryptocurrency). Doge’s remit is to “dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies”.
Joining Musk in leading the body is Vivek Ramaswamy, a wealthy biotech entrepreneur and former Republican candidate. Neither Musk nor Ramaswamy have government experience, but have both pushed for large-scale cost-cutting in the corporate sector. Despite the name, the so-called “department” will not in fact be a government agency, meaning Musk and Ramaswamy will not be bound by financial disclosure or conflict of interest laws as public servants.
