Trump limited Musk's powers in managing the US government - Politico

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that billionaire Elon Musk will no longer have the authority to make key decisions regarding policy and personnel in the government. This is reported by Politico, writes UNN.

Details 

Trump made this statement after convening the cabinet, during which he clearly stated that Musk can only provide recommendations to the departments but cannot make final decisions. Musk was present in the cabinet during this statement.

The meeting took place after a series of mass layoffs and threats directed at civil servants by the founder of Tesla, billionaire and head of the Department of Government Efficiency, which created widespread uncertainty in the federal government and its employees.

Doge's actions faced fierce resistance in court and criticism from Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans.

Trump's statement is the first significant step in narrowing Musk's mandate. According to Trump's new guidelines, Doge and its employees are to play an advisory role, but final decisions regarding personnel, policy, and implementation rates must be made by cabinet ministers.

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Musk joined the conversation and made it clear that he agrees with Trump's directive. According to reports, Musk acknowledged that Doge made some mistakes - a message he shared earlier this week with members of Congress.

Trump emphasized that he wants to keep good people in the government and not to fire capable federal employees en masse. However, his administration has laid off tens of thousands of federal employees in numerous agencies over the past weeks during a series of mass layoffs. A federal judge and the head of the federal civil service board concluded that the layoffs were not related to performance issues - and could have violated civil service laws.

It remains unclear whether the recommendations will lead to the re-hiring of laid-off employees.

Subsequently, Trump posted information about the meeting on Truth Social, promising to hold similar meetings every two weeks.

"As the ministers get to know and understand the people working in various departments, they can be very precise about who stays and who goes," he wrote. "We are talking 'scalpel', not 'axe'. Their combination, Elon, Doge, and other big people can make things happen on a historical level."

Later, the president told reporters that he wants cabinet members to "keep all the people you want, all the ones you need."

But he also said he wants cuts, and Musk will maintain control over the downsizing process: "If they can cut, that's better. And if they don't cut, then Elon will handle the cuts."

Later, Musk retweeted Trump's post and called it "a very productive meeting."

Reminder

U.S. President Donald Trump, during a speech in Congress, introduced billionaire Elon Musk as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency. 

He also noted that Musk was not interested in taking this position.