California Congressman Ro Khanna (D) said Elon Musk could be “frustrating” while in office to cut unnecessary government spending.
“Elon can get irritated easily,” Khanna said. Thursday's POLITICO Tech Podcast. “I mean, let's see if he can cut the defense. My guess is there's going to be a lot of people on that committee. [who] More defense spending will be needed. It's going to be a test. ”
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have been tapped to co-direct the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and lead efforts to reshape government agencies and their spending habits.
But Khanna noted that this is not the first time the two men have presented proposals for budget cuts, so they could face an uphill battle.
“There are a lot of committees that recommend a lot of things to reduce waste in government, but they tend to be just committees,” Khanna said. “And I think the real issue here is how effectively he goes after real waste, real abuse, like against defense contractors.”
But they have already announced plans to shed federal jobs amid massive layoffs and regulatory rollbacks.
But as a non-governmental commission, DOGE will be limited to an advisory capacity and could face some hurdles from within the executive branch and Congress, experts previously told The Hill.
But Musk is a close ally of President-elect Trump and has been heard as his staunch defender throughout the campaign.
