Trump taps Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to slash gov’t with ‘DOGE’

United States President-elect Donald Trump has appointed Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new government agency, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), aimed at reducing federal spending and cutting regulations.

The new organization will “dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies,” Trump stated.

An excerpt from Donald Trump’s DOGE announcement shared by Elon Musk on X. Source: Elon Musk

“This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in Government waste, which is a lot of people,” Musk said in the announcement.

DOGE to cut waste from $6.5 trillion in government spending

The newly created DOGE will provide advice and guidance from outside of the government. It will also partner with the White House and Office of Management and Budget  to drive a “large-scale structural reform” and create an “entrepreneurial approach to government never seen before.”

DOGE’s task includes addressing waste in the US government’s $6.5 trillion in annual spending.

According to official data from the US government, it has spent $6.75 trillion in fiscal year 2024, with federal spending increasing by $617 billion over the same period last year.

US government spending in the fiscal year 2024. Source: Fiscal Data

“I look forward to Elon and Vivek making changes to the Federal Bureaucracy with an eye on efficiency and, at the same time, making life better for all Americans,” Trump stated.

Dogecoin price is up 150% since election

Since Trump’s presidential win, the price of Dogecoin ( DOGE ) — Musk’s favorite cryptocurrency — has seen a massive rally, surging roughly 150% since election day.

On Nov. 12, Dogecoin briefly surged to above $0.4 for the first time since May 2021, according to data from CoinGecko. At the time of writing, the cryptocurrency is trading at $0.38, down around 8% over the past 24 hours.

Dogecoin price chart since October 2020. Source: CoinGecko

Musk’s lead position at Trump’s DOGE builds on the growing relationship between the two since the Tesla CEO reinstated Trump’s X account in November 2022, shortly after acquiring Twitter (now X) for $44 billion .

Related: Elon Musk reposts call to end the US Federal Reserve Bank

In August, Trump said he would consider putting Musk in his Cabinet or an advisory role starting in January 2025 if he wins the US presidential election.

Musk’s DOGE co-lead Ramaswamy is known for his pro-cryptocurrency stance. In November 2023, Ramaswamy called for mass deregulation of the cryptocurrency in his presidential campaign. He dropped out of the 2024 presidential race in January.

In early November 2024, Ramaswamy’s asset management firm, Strive Enterprises, announced a new wealth management unit  integrating Bitcoin into client portfolios .

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