Trump signs order handing Musk and DOGE more power to slash federal workforce

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Asked about critics who’ve called his anti-government efforts a “hostile takeover” of the executive branch, Musk told reporters: “The people voted for major government reform and that’s what the people are going to get.” He claimed that the purpose of Trump’s administration was to “restore democracy” by eliminating the independence of the professionalized civil service, which he described as “this unelected fourth, unconstitutional branch of government, which is the bureaucracy.” Musk also suggested that executive branch agencies have “in a lot of ways, currently, more power than any elected representative” and claimed — without offering any evidence — that federal employees were illegally enriching themselves to the tune of tens of millions of dollars and said his effort is also targeting alleged fraud in federal spending. Musk complained that the speed at which retirement papers are processed is determined by the speed of an elevator inside the facility and he marveled that there are “1,000 people that work on this.” As he spoke to reporters, Musk claimed that DOGE’s goal is to “get people to do, to shift from roles that are low to negative productivity to high productivity roles and said doing so would “increase the total output of goods and services, which means that there's a higher standard of living available for everyone.” A White House fact sheet obtained by The Independent states that the new executive order requires the heads of federal agencies to “coordinate and consult with DOGE to shrink the size of the federal workforce and limit hiring to essential positions” and directs the Office of Personnel Management, which is already led by Musk allies, to promulgate new rules for federal worker conduct. He has already targeted the United States Agency for International Development and the Department of Education for his cuts Trump’s order, which will not apply to “national security, public safety, law enforcement, and immigration enforcement” components of the federal government, is the latest effort by the new president and his wealthy patron to downsize the nation’s 2.2 million federal workers. Trump also chimed in to say that USAID was “corrupt” and “incompetent” and griped about a federal judge’s order preventing his administration from laying off the tens of thousands who have worked for the agency.