President-elect Donald Trump has announced his picks to help cut government spending. Areas like transportation and education could face heightened scrutiny.
On Tuesday, Trump selected Tesla CEO Elon Musk and the former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead what he deemed the "Department of Government Efficiency," or DOGE — an acronym that matches a dog-themed meme and cryptocurrency that Musk has frequently referenced.
It does not exist as a government department, so Musk and Ramaswamy's role would likely entail offering advice to Trump on areas to cut spending, which Congress would then need to approve.
Data from the Treasury Department shows that the government spent $6.75 trillion in fiscal year 2024, which resulted in a deficit. The highest amounts of spending came from the Department of Health and Human Services, the Social Security Administration, and the Treasury Department.
Over the past year, Social Security accounted for $1.46 trillion of the spending, health accounted for $912 billion, and Medicare came in at $874 billion.
Trump said in his announcement that the office would "provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before."
Every year, Congress has to approve discretionary spending through the annual appropriations process. That includes areas like the $305 billion spent on education and other social services and the $137 billion spent on transportation.
Social Security and Medicare are forms of mandatory spending that do not require annual congressional approval and would require legislation to change.
Musk said during a Trump rally before the election that he would identify at least $2 trillion in spending cuts, which would amount to nearly one-third of total government spending, including the mandatory retirement-security programs.
Trump said that Musk and Ramaswamy's work would be concluded "no later than July 4, 2026." While it's unclear what the government-efficiency office will advise, Trump has previously suggested shutting down government agencies, such as the Education Department, to reduce inefficiency. Ramaswamy has echoed that sentiment, voicing support for shutting down various agencies, including the IRS and the FBI.
Trump alone could not close a federal agency — doing so would require congressional approval.
Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition, said in a statement to Business Insider: "The American people re-elected President Trump by a resounding margin giving him a mandate to implement the promises he made on the campaign trail. He will deliver." She did not elaborate on the areas the government-efficiency commission would prioritize for spending cuts.
Musk wrote Tuesday on X that all the department's actions would be posted online "for maximum transparency" and that "anytime the public thinks we are cutting something important or not cutting something wasteful, just let us know!"
