Trump curbs Musk's power with new cabinet directives
Donald Trump informed his cabinet members that they should be the ones to decide who loses their job after acquiring the appropriate knowledge. This marks the first such move by the U.S. president, which could curtail the ambitions of his close associate, Elon Musk. Americans did not react positively to the mass layoffs of federal employees.
President Donald Trump personally informed his cabinet members that they are responsible for their departments, not Elon Musk, reports Politico. He made the statement during a meeting convened on Thursday. The billionaire, who manages the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was in attendance.
Trump told key members of his administration that while Musk is authorized to make recommendations to departments, he should not make unilateral decisions regarding personnel or policy.
Trump on layoffs: More scalpel than hatchet
Politico notes that this is the first such move by Trump, which can be seen as an attempt to limit Musk's power. According to the president's new guidelines, DOGE and its staff should play an advisory role, but members of the administration, managing individual departments, should make the final decisions regarding personnel, policy, and the pace of implementing changes.
Donald Trump confirmed Thursday's message to his cabinet 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," wrote the U.S. president.
Musk's strategy: Massive cuts and pressure
Musk, the owner of SpaceX and Tesla and the world's richest man, supported Donald Trump in the presidential campaign with a substantial contribution. After Trump’s victory in the elections, Musk was appointed to lead the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). His task is to radically reduce administrative costs.
The billionaire and his team almost immediately began implementing major cuts and a campaign to pressure federal employees to resign voluntarily. Many of these decisions caused upheaval—some had to be reversed—such as the dismissal of individuals responsible for the American nuclear arsenal or halted—like getting rid of air traffic controllers and other Federal Aviation Administration employees. Reports emerged that individuals to be laid off are being selected using artificial intelligence.
According to American media, tens of thousands of federal government employees were laid off in the first month of President Donald Trump’s administration. "The New York Times" estimated that by February 26, the number of employees who lost their jobs exceeded 30,000.
Meanwhile, 75,000 federal employees reportedly took advantage of the "deferred resignation" offer. In exchange for financial incentives, including months of paid leave, they decided to leave their jobs by February 6 (data from February 22 provided to the AP by the Office of Personnel Management).
