President Donald Trump sprang to the defense of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, dubiously claiming that the tech business owner is “not gaining anything.”
In an interview with Fox News host Bret Baier set to air before the Super Bowl Sunday, the president hailed Musk for leading a purge of federal employees and disrupting government departments.
Trump was adamant that his administration was acting according to the will of American voters who elected him.
“Look, I ran on this, and the people want me to find it, and I’ve had a great help with Elon Musk, who’s been terrific,” he said.
“You say you trust him?” Baier asked.
“Trust Elon? Oh, he’s not gaining anything,” Trump stressed.
Critics have assailed Musk for conflicts of interest given his government work and ownership of various companies. The New York Times reported in October that his companies accumulated some $3 billion in government contracts. A month after Trump’s win in November, his net worth was reported to have spiked to over $400 billion.
As recently as this week, the White House press secretary suggested Musk could decide himself whether he has a conflict of interest in his role overseeing government spending cuts.
The billionaire tech leader has also recently come under fire for accessing sensitive data across government departments, including Treasury data and that of disaster victims under the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He has also drawn rebuke for his mass offer of buyouts for federal workers and gung-ho measures to clog up international funding from the United States Agency for International Development.
The Department of Government Efficiency’s sweeping measures have prompted half a dozen costly lawsuits against federal departments and agencies.
During the interview with Baier, Trump praised Musk for putting so much effort into changing government operations.
“I wonder how he can devote the time to it,” Trump said. “He’s so into it.”
The president teased which department Musk could divide and conquer next.
“I’m going to tell him very soon, like maybe in 24 hours, to go check the Department of Education,” Trump said, adding that he would then have Musk go after military spending. “He’s going to find the same thing. We’re going to find billions, hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud and abuse.”
