US president-elect Donald Trump has appointed South African-born tech billionaire Elon Musk in a key role in his incoming administration, as Trump looks to commence his second term at the White House.
The second presidency of Donald Trump is set to begin on 20 January 2025, when he will be inaugurated as the 47th president of the US.
During the campaign period, which resulted in Trump defeating Democrat Kamala Harris, Musk, who is the world’s richest man, avidly supported the president-elect.
In a statement, Trump says: “I am pleased to announce that the great Elon Musk, working in conjunction with American patriot Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
DOGE is a temporary, newly-created government department in the incoming administration.
“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure federal agencies – essential to the ‘Save America’ movement.”
“This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in government waste, which is a lot of people," said Musk after the appointment.
Musk is known for his key roles in space company SpaceX and electric vehicle company Tesla. Other involvements include ownership of X Corp, the company that operates social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter).
With a net worth of $320.2 billion, according to Forbes, Musk was born in Pretoria, where he briefly attended the University of Pretoria before emigrating to Canada at the age of 18. He acquired US citizenship in 2002.
Adds Trump: “It will become, potentially, ‘The Manhattan Project’ of our time. Republican politicians have dreamed about the objectives of ‘DOGE’ for a very long time.”
He adds that to drive this kind of drastic change, the DOGE will provide advice and guidance from outside of government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large-scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to government.
“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 continues.
“Importantly, we will drive out the massive waste and fraud which exists throughout our annual $6.5 trillion of government spending. They will work together to liberate our economy, and make the US government accountable to ‘we the people’.
“Their work will conclude no later than 4 July 2026. A smaller government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. I am confident they will succeed,” he concludes.
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