JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon praised Elon Musk's plan to create a Government Efficiency Commission, calling it a “very good idea” and emphasizing the need for greater government accountability.
In an interview CNBC-TV18 At the India Investor Summit, Prashant Nair addressed Musk's proposal to set up an efficiency task force to audit the federal government.
“Elon, I actually like the idea of setting up an efficiency commission. I think government has to be more efficient and more competent and think about what it's getting when it comes to raising money,” Dimon said. “I actually think it's a very good idea.”
Dimon said the idea reminded him of Al Gore's “Reform Government” initiative, launched in 1993 to make the federal government “work better.”
“We really need to do that. In the United States, we will certainly do that,” Dimon added. “Many other countries need to do the same.”
His comments came less than a month after former President Trump supported Musk's proposal for a government efficiency task force and revealed that he would appoint the billionaire entrepreneur to lead the committee if elected president.
The Commission on Government Efficiency will conduct a financial and performance audit of the federal government and seek to track fraud and improper payments in government programs, then recommend “radical reforms” to promote efficiency with the goal of eliminating fraud and improper payments within six months of its creation, Trump said.
The Tesla CEO confirmed that he agreed to join the committee, writing to X, “I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises. No compensation, title or recognition is required.”
Musk first proposed the creation of a government efficiency commission during a conversation with the former president at X last month after he endorsed him for president, and said he would be “happy to help create such a commission.”
Politicians and business leaders have pushed for government efficiency commissions before: Republican President Ronald Reagan created a similar body called the Grace Commission while in office from 1981 to 1989.
But not everyone supports the task force.
Everett Kelly, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, a union that represents 750,000 federal workers, accused Trump and Musk of trying to undermine the federal government's nonpartisan civil service and replace the fired employees with their own.
“That's just not efficient,” Kelly told Reuters.
Fox Business' Eric Revell contributed to this report.
