Elon Musk was confirmed by Donald Trump as a member of his cabinet to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency alongside Vivek Ramaswamy, which will be known as DOGE. The Tesla owner has shown a close relationship with the president-elect since the campaign phase, their ties have been so strong that supposedly, he was on the phone line with the president the day after the elections, when he spoke with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky.
Musk was one of Trump's biggest financial backers during his presidential campaign, donating at least 200 million dollars. Sources revealed to NBC News that the billionaire's closeness and presence has been so constant that it is causing discomfort "in the Trump orbit," as they have felt him to be dominant.
"The sources (anonymous) said that Musk's almost constant presence at Mar-a-Lago in the week since Election Day had begun to wear on people who have been in Trump's inner circle longer than the tech billionaire and see him overstepping his role in the transition," the media outlet said.
Some people believe that Elon Musk is overstaying his welcome at Mar-a-Lago, where he traveled last week and has not left Trump's side, accompanying him in calls and meetings. According to sources close to the Trumps, he is behaving like "a co-president," and "makes sure everyone knows it."
The alleged airs of grandeur of the owner of X are such that one of the informants familiar with Donald Trump's inner circle reported that "he takes a lot of credit for the presidents' victories. It sounds like he's trying to make President Trump feel indebted to him, and the president doesn't owe anyone anything".
Another person said that Elon has an "opinion on everything and anything". He expresses his ideas so strongly that he is starting to annoy those around the president-elect. "He wants to be seen as having an opinion on everything (even if he doesn't)," a source said.
The aforementioned media outlet indicated that, even though they have tried to get Musk's opinion on these allegations, he has not responded.
Elon Musk and Donald Trump, "great friends"
Karoline Leavitt, spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition, said in a statement that "Elon Musk and President Trump are great friends and brilliant leaders who work together to make America great again. Elon Musk is a once-in-a-generation business leader and our federal bureaucracy will certainly benefit from his ideas and efficiency."
Donald Trump explained that the work of the DOGE Department, which Musk will lead with Ramaswamy, is to pave the way "for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, reduce excessive regulations, eliminate unnecessary expenses, and restructure federal agencies."
The president-elect stated that “DOGE” “will provide advice and guidance from outside the government.”