Elon Musk, a billionaire, and US President Donald Trump reject media efforts to create division, reaffirming their shared commitment to enacting policies.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump portrayed Elon Musk as his primary enforcer, praising the tech billionaire’s eagerness to carry out the flurry of executive orders the president has signed since taking office again.
The two men spent a considerable amount of time complimenting one another and downplaying criticism of Trump’s use of executive powers in a joint interview that was televised on Fox News.
In the last three weeks, Trump has issued numerous executive orders, many of which have been contested in court as perhaps unlawful.
The newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by billionaire Musk, who was Trump’s largest supporter during his 2024 presidential campaign, was entrusted with eradicating “waste, fraud, and abuse” in federal spending.
“One of the biggest functions of the DOGE team is just making sure that the presidential executive orders are actually carried out,” Musk stated to Fox News.
Trump stated in the interview that Musk had a key role in advancing his proposals, which include a complete reorganization of federal institutions, and that they should be put into effect immediately.
“After writing an executive order and sending it out, you believe it has been completed, but it is not. “It’s not implemented,” Trump declared.
He went on to say that Musk and the DOGE team have turned into a federal bureaucratic enforcement tool that must fulfill his administration’s goals without interference or face termination.
“And some guy that maybe didn’t want to do it, all of a sudden, he’s signing it,” Trump stated.
“The people’s will.”
Hours after Trump signed a comprehensive executive order aimed at expanding and strengthening direct White House authority over federal regulatory agencies, the Fox interview was aired.
The order would require organizations such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to submit regulatory plans to the White House for assessment; it is expected to encounter legal challenges.
“For the Federal Government to be truly accountable to the American people, officials who wield vast executive power must be supervised and controlled by the people’s elected President,” the order reads.
By claiming that none of Trump’s cabinet members were elected and that he sees his position as supporting Trump’s objectives, Musk dismissed charges that he was behaving like the US president.
“The president is the elected representative of the people, so it’s representing the will of the people,” Musk said.
“And if the bureaucracy is fighting the will of the people and preventing the president from implementing what the people want, then what we live in is a bureaucracy and not a democracy.”
Elon, President?
Although the Republican leader was quick to deny rumors of animosity between the two, Musk’s significant involvement in the Trump administration has caused the public to wonder who is actually in charge at the White House.
“Elon actually called me,” Trump said. “You know, they’re trying to split us apart,” he remarked. I replied, “Definitely.”
Trump, however, stated his belief that Americans will not be duped by purported attempts to sour relations between him and Musk.
Trump remarked, “I used to think they were good at it,” in reference to the media.
“They’re actually bad at it because if they were good at it, I’d never be president.”
He continued by saying, “The people are smart,” “They get it.”
