Trump reins in Musk's power over government layoffs
Donald Trump has informed his cabinet members that they are to make decisions regarding potential job losses after acquiring the necessary knowledge. This is the President of the United States' first such directive, which might curtail the ambitions of his close ally, Elon Musk. The American public did not react favourably to the widespread layoffs of federal employees.
President Donald Trump personally conveyed to his cabinet members that they are in charge of their departments, not Elon Musk, reports Politico. The statement was made during a meeting convened by the US President on Thursday. The billionaire, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was present.
Trump informed key members of his administration that although Musk is authorised to provide recommendations to departments, he should not independently decide on personnel and policy matters.
Trump on layoffs: Scalpel rather than hatchet
Politico notes that this is Trump's first move that can be seen as an attempt to restrict Musk's authority. According to the new presidential guidelines, DOGE and its employees should serve in an advisory capacity. However, it is the administration members overseeing individual departments who should make the final decisions concerning staff, policy, and the pace of implementing changes.
He reiterated his statements from Thursday in a post on Truth Social.
"As the Secretaries learn about, and understand, the people working for the various Departments, they can be very precise as to who will remain, and who will go. We say the 'scalpel' rather than the 'hatchet.' The combination of them, Elon, DOGE, and other great people will be able to do things at a historic level," the US President wrote.
Musk, the owner of SpaceX and Tesla and the wealthiest person in the world, supported Donald Trump during the presidential campaign with a substantial contribution. Following Trump's election victory, Musk was appointed to lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). His role is to significantly reduce administrative expenses.
The billionaire and his team quickly initiated major reductions and a campaign aimed at encouraging federal employees to resign voluntarily. Many of these actions caused disruptions - some had to be reversed, such as the dismissal of those responsible for the US nuclear arsenal, or halted, like the attempt to remove air traffic controllers and other employees of the Federal Aviation Administration. There have been reports that artificial intelligence is being used to select individuals for redundancy.
