Tesla and Space X CEO and richest man in the world, Elon Musk, has said that he will complete the task of cutting down government spending, given to him by President Donald Trump, within weeks.
According to Reuters, Musk made the comments Thursday and noted he would finish most of the work on cutting $1 trillion in spending, as soon as 64 days.
Musk appeared confident that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) could find the savings while speaking to Fox News’ “Special Report with Bret Baier.”
Federal spending would be reduced from $7 trillion to $6 trillion, a feat that could be complete by the end of May. Because Musk is a “special government employee,” his work in the White House and with DOGE is capped at only 130 days.
When asked about his tenure and the expected completion date of the cost cuts, Musk told Bret Baier the government is not efficient, but he thinks he will accomplish that goal, nonetheless.
“I think we will accomplish most of the work required to reduce the deficit by a trillion dollars within that time frame,” Musk said. “The government is not efficient, and there is a lot of waste and fraud, so we feel confident that a 15% reduction can be done without affecting any of the critical government services.”
DOGE has already estimated that the government has saved $115 billion due to workforce reductions, contract cancellations, and asset sales. However, Reuters further reported that experts have warned that Musk will be unable to reach his goal without making cuts to programs like Social Security.
“Unless this exercise is successful, the ship of America will sink. That’s why we’re doing it,” Musk said.
