THE Department of Government Effectiveness (or DOGE) which until this week was led by Trump acolytes Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, has claimed to want to restructure the federal bureaucracy and save money by lay off a large number of government employees. Ironically, however, the first employee DOGE got rid of was one of its own: Ramaswamy.
“It was my honor to help support the creation of DOGE,” Ramaswamy tweeted Mondayfollowing persistent rumors of his ouster. “I am confident that Elon and his team will succeed in streamlining government.” Ramaswamy’s abrupt departure from DOGE was accompanied by rumors that the billionaire was preparing to rise a gubernatorial campaign in Ohio. “I will have more to say very soon about my future plans in Ohio,” Ramaswamy said Monday.
Ramaswamy had been largely sidelined in the MAGA world since December, when he controversially tweeted about H-1B Temporary Worker Visas and skilled immigrants, denouncing a part of American culture that “revered mediocrity rather than excellence.” The tweet sparked infighting in Trumpworld and exposed an ideological divide between MAGA types who valued skilled immigrants and those who apparently didn’t.
A source close to Ramaswamy told the press that he remains in good standing with Musk and that he will be “cheer DOGE” on the sidelines. Trump transition officials have also sought to portray the abrupt departure in a favorable light. “Vivek Ramaswamy played an integral role in helping us create DOGE,” said Anna Kelly, spokesperson for the transition. “He intends to run for office soon, which requires him to stay out of DOGE based on the structure we announced today. We thank him immensely for his contributions over the past two months and hope that he will play a vital role in making America great again. »
However, other reports have been less charitable about the situation. Indeed, a recent report from Politico makes it appear that Ramaswamy was forced out of his position with extreme prejudice by Musk. A Republican strategist told point of sale that Ramaswamy “just burned the bridges and he ultimately burned Elon.” The strategist added: “Everyone wants him out of Mar-a-Lago, out of DC.” The article further claims that Musk “made it known that he wanted Ramaswamy to leave DOGE,” citing three people familiar with the situation.
Ramaswamy’s tweet about H1B visas was partially credited with his withdrawal from DOGE. “They wanted it out before the tweet — but they kicked it to the curb when it came out,” a source told Politico.
While its general mission is clear, DOGE has – until this week – remained largely amorphous. It has called itself a “department” of government, but is not one, and while it claims broad powers (including the ability to “cut” federal agencies), it is unclear whether what legal or regulatory authority it actually has. No one outside the organization seems to know who pays the salaries of the organization’s staff. Increasingly, DOGE appears to be an entity controlled by Musk and working in his interests. The Washington Post has previously reported that the approximately 50 DOGE employees worked in the offices of EspaceXthe defense contractor owned by Musk. Additionally, one of the top leadership positions at DOGE is now occupied by Steve Daviswho is also currently chairman of Musk’s Boring business. Davis has been called Musk’s “cost reducer” and notably helped Musk continue his aggressive strategy of layoffs at Twitter, when Musk laid off around 6,000 employees, reducing its overall workforce by 80 percent.
This week, Trump clarified things somewhat by issued a decree which reorganized an Obama-era government modernization unit, the US Digital Service, and transformed it into the US DOGE Service. This EO, however, says little about the broad powers needed to achieve Musk’s wordy goals of tearing down the government. Instead, its first task will be to modernize “information technology across government” and update agency software to private sector standards. A fact sheet for the order further asserts that DOGE will “work with the Office of Management and Budget and all agencies to reduce the federal workforce, federal spending, and federal regulatory burdens.” , Semafor previously reported.
With Ramaswamy’s departure, it appears that Musk has only strengthened his power. The New York Times reported On Monday, Musk will likely occupy offices in the West Wing itself, giving him close and continued access to Trump.
The public interest law firm National Security Advisors sued DOGE just minutes after Trump’s inaugurationarguing – in its suit – that DOGE is actually a presidential advisory committee that does not adhere to regulatory protocol. Under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), advisory committees are required to follow certain transparency and hiring rules, according to the Washington Post. reports. If DOGE is indeed an advisory group (as some news articles have alleged that it resembles) these rules should be followed.
“If the Trump administration changes the structure of DOGE to make it a government office, that could potentially render the matter moot,” Kel McClanahan, executive director of the national security advisers, told the Post. “But that would subject Musk and others to a whole bunch of ethical laws that I don’t think they want to be subject to.” DOGE is also sued by Public Citizena non-profit consumer advocacy organization, which also alleges that DOGE is breaking the law by failing to comply with the advisory board’s regulations. In the meantime, the project has launched its own .gov certified website Tuesday. This is what it currently looks like:
