Elon Musk has been busy after President Donald Trump took the White House for the second time. The tech billionaire has been by Trump’s side during every major decision and executive order since the 2024 election campaign. And now, it looks like he is determined to change the federal government to his liking.
Reportedly, just past midnight on Feb. 3, Musk took to X to explain what he is doing with the federal government. Musk argued that he constitutes “a fourth branch of government” which is “arguably the most powerful branch.”
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With Vivek Ramaswamy’s exit from Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Musk has become the sole leader of the branch to oversee government spending and productivity.
Musk is officially serving as a “special government employee” under Trump, a White House official said.
According to a Justice Department summary, a special government employee is “anyone who works, or is expected to work, for the government for 130 days or less in a 365-day period.” Musk is not being paid, a person familiar with his employment told CNN.
On Monday, Trump confirmed that Musk has access to the Treasury Department’s critical payment system, which distributes funds on behalf of the federal government. Federal unions and other groups sued the Treasury Department on Monday over Musk’s access.
In his new role as the special government employee, he turned his focus to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which he denounced as little more than a device to funnel taxpayers’ money to Marxists and criminals. He claimed to have the full support of Trump and is “shutting it down,” notwithstanding that the agency’s existence is mandated by Congress. Later he posted that he had spent the weekend “feeding USAID into the woodchipper.”
Musk has frequently expressed views supporting limited government intervention in business and innovation, advocating for more freedom in the private sector. He has criticized excessive regulations, believing that bureaucracy stifles progress, particularly in industries like space exploration and electric vehicles. Musk has stated that while government contracts helped kickstart companies like SpaceX and Tesla, he prefers a future where such companies are self-sustaining and not reliant on subsidies.
On taxation, Musk has been critical of high tax rates, arguing that the wealthy contribute significantly but often see inefficiencies in how tax dollars are spent. While he has been vocal about the need for clean energy, he also criticizes the inefficiencies in some government policies and subsidies related to environmental efforts.
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Musk supports government involvement in space exploration but emphasizes the importance of private companies driving innovation, as seen with SpaceX. His political stance is generally independent, and while he has criticized policies, like pandemic lockdowns, he avoids aligning with a specific party. Additionally, Musk advocates for less regulation in the cryptocurrency space, praising digital currencies like Bitcoin and Dogecoin for offering an alternative to centralized financial systems.
Overall, Musk aims to champion innovation and minimal governmental interference in the economy which, only time will tell, is for the better or worse.