WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order designed to ramp up his endeavor to drastically scale back the size of the federal government, a campaign already being carried under an effort called DOGE led by billionaire Elon Musk. 

What You Need To Know

  • President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order designed to ramp up his endeavor to drastically scale back the size of the federal government, a campaign already being carried under an effort called DOGE led by billionaire Elon Musk
  • The new order directs agency heads to “coordinate and consult with DOGE to shrink the size of the federal workforce” and prepare to “undertake plans for large-scale reductions in force"
  • Trump was joined by the billionaire SpaceX CEO in the Oval Office ahead of the signing of the order to take questions from press
  • Musk detailed some of the “crazy” things he said his DOGE team has already discovered the federal government has been spending money on, defending his effort in the face of uproar from Democrats over the major shake-ups the campaign has already brought

“We’ve already found billions of dollars of abuse, incompetence and corruption,” Trump declared to reporters in the Oval Office. 

The new order directs agency heads to “coordinate and consult with DOGE to shrink the size of the federal workforce” and prepare to “undertake plans for large-scale reductions in force.” 

Specifically, it mandates that agencies should “hire no more than one employee for every four employees that depart from federal service.” There are plans for exceptions when it comes to immigration, law enforcement and public safety.

Trump was joined by the billionaire SpaceX CEO in the Oval Office ahead of the signing of the order to take questions from press. Musk detailed some of the “crazy” things he said his DOGE team has already discovered the federal government has been spending money on, defending his effort in the face of uproar from Democrats over the major shake-ups the campaign has already brought. 

“The people voted for major government reform and that’s what the people are going to get, they are going to get what they voted for,” he said, adding “And that’s what democracy is all about.” 

The so-called Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE for short, is not an official government department but has been tasked with leading Trump’s seemingly sprawling effort to downsize the government. As for Musk himself, the world's richest person and the owner of social media site X has been given the title of special government employee, which subjects him to less stringent rules on ethics and financial disclosures than other workers. 

When asked about concerns from some that Musk and his DOGE campaign are operating with a lack of transparency and amid potential conflicts of interest, the billionaire argued his actions are public and compared the focus on him to getting a “daily proctology exam.”

“It’s not like I think I can get away with something, I’ll be scrutinized non-stop,” Musk said. 

The president added that the White House would “not let him” look in a particular area if it believed there was a conflict of interest.  

Trump and Musk are already pushing federal workers to resign in return for financial incentives, although their plan is currently on hold while a judge reviews its legality. The deferred resignation program, commonly described as a buyout, would allow employees to quit and still get paid until Sept. 30. Administration officials said more than 65,000 workers have taken the offer.

Democrats have been seeking to sound the alarm over DOGE’s moves thus far, decrying recent actions at the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau as well as over access to sensitive treasury payment systems. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.