Tech entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy announced Wednesday that their newly formed government efficiency panel aims to identify “thousands” of federal regulations for President-elect Donald Trump to eliminate. The initiative, they argue, will lead to significant reductions in government personnel, addressing what they call bureaucratic overgrowth.
Musk and Ramaswamy, who were appointed co-chairs of the panel last week, revealed their plans for the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) in a Wall Street Journal article.
The co-chairs expressed their commitment to pursuing federal reforms in three key areas: regulatory rescissions, administrative reductions, and cost-saving measures.
“Our goal is to advise DOGE at every step, focusing particularly on driving change through executive action, utilizing existing legislation rather than relying on new laws,” they wrote.
Both Musk and Ramaswamy pointed to recent Supreme Court rulings that have limited the power of the administrative state.
They argued that many current federal regulations exceed the authority of agencies and could be eliminated under a Trump administration. They also contend that slashing regulations should lead to corresponding reductions in the government workforce.
“A drastic reduction in federal regulations provides sound industrial logic for mass head-count reductions across the federal bureaucracy,” they wrote. “Fewer employees are needed to enforce fewer regulations, and with a properly limited scope of authority, the agency will produce fewer regulations.”
Musk has publicly spoken on several occasions about his intentions to trim waste within the federal budget.
“If the current trend of strangulation by overregulation is not turned around, we’ll never get to Mars,” Musk said at a recent town hall meeting. “There’s so much government waste that’s going on…in every direction, there’s mad waste. If people simply know that if they waste a ton of taxpayer money, or do something that’s basically corruption, then they’re going to get fired, then that will immediately improve the situation.”
“If they’re effective in spending your money, because taxpayer money is your money, they should be rewarded, they should be promoted. They have a duty to spend your money well.”
Addressing concerns about civil service protections, which could potentially hinder Trump from firing federal employees, Musk and Ramaswamy argued that these protections were meant to prevent political retaliation. They pointed out that the statute allows for “reductions in force” that do not target specific employees. The law also grants the president broad authority to prescribe rules governing the competitive service.
“Mr. Trump can implement a number of rules that would curb administrative overgrowth—ranging from large-scale firings to relocating federal agencies outside the Washington area,” they wrote.
Reports indicate that government workers are already preparing for potential job cuts, with some hiring attorneys and planning public campaigns to push back. Many are also hopeful that Congress may intervene to prevent drastic layoffs, according to Reuters.
DOGE is also aiming to address what they describe as “unauthorized” federal funding, which could affect areas such as veterans’ health care, opioid addiction treatment, and even NASA, The Washington Post reported.
The op-ed seemed to anticipate skepticism about the ability of Musk and Ramaswamy’s panel to bring about significant change, given its advisory capacity as an outside commission. Experts have previously noted that while the panel can make recommendations, it could face challenges from both the executive branch and Congress.
As the upcoming Trump administration begins to take shape, Musk and Ramaswamy’s efforts to streamline government operations and reduce federal regulations will likely remain a key topic of discussion. Their ambitious plans seek to reshape the federal bureaucracy, citing both economic efficiency and the need to restore accountability in the government.
