Elon Musk not a DOGE employee, cannot fire employees: White House

Since the start of Donald Trump's second term last month, Elon Musk-led DOGE has undertaken an aggressive effort to cut costs across federal agencies

As concerns mount over Elon Musk’s influence in Donald Trump’s new administration — particularly regarding his role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) amid widespread dismissals — the White House has clarified that Musk is not a department employee and does not have decision-making authority.

 

A recent court filing, signed by Joshua Fisher, director of the Office of Administration at the White House, stated that Musk serves as both a White House employee and a senior advisor to the President. However, his role is limited to offering advice and relaying the President’s directives.  

 

“Like other senior White House advisors, Musk has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself,” Fisher noted in the filing, as reported by Reuters. He further clarified that Musk is not the US DOGE Service Administrator.

 

 

Cutting jobs across federal agencies

 

Since the start of Trump’s second term last month, DOGE has undertaken an aggressive effort to cut costs across federal agencies. Musk was tasked with identifying and eliminating what the administration deems “wasteful spending,” a move that has already resulted in thousands of job cuts.  

 

Trump’s decision to place Elon Musk at the forefront of this initiative was part of a broader push to scale back the federal workforce and phase out certain government programs. Through an executive order, Trump directed agency leaders to prepare for large-scale reductions, leading to a wave of firings across multiple agencies.  

 

The extent of Musk’s authority has come under legal scrutiny, with around 20 lawsuits filed in various federal courts challenging his role. The cases have yielded mixed outcomes, prompting a federal judge to question the legitimacy of Musk’s involvement in government operations.  

 

In the court case brought against Musk by the State of New Mexico, Fisher reiterated that Musk is neither employed by the US DOGE Service nor the US DOGE Service Temporary Organization. The administration maintains that while Musk advises Trump on policy matters, he lacks the formal power to implement government decisions independently.