‘Your money is being wasted’: Elon Musk just claimed he could cut $2 trillion from the US federal budget — promises to ‘get the government off your back.’ Can he really?

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

When Trump rolled out his economic proposals in September — including a new government efficiency commission to be led by Musk — the Tesla CEO expressed his willingness to take on the role.

“I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises. No pay, no title, no recognition is needed,” Musk wrote in a post on X.

In characteristic style, Musk has joked about his prospective role as head of the “Department of Government Efficiency,” nicknamed “DOGE” after the cryptocurrency he has frequently championed.

Trump acknowledged Musk’s many commitments and doubted he could dedicate himself to the role full-time. “I don’t think I can get him full-time because he’s a little bit busy sending rockets up and all the things he does. But he’s so much into that, he said the waste in this country is crazy,” Trump remarked.

And Trump doesn’t plan to pay Musk for his efforts — which, with a net worth of $272 billion, Musk probably doesn’t need.

Musk, who has endorsed Trump for president, sees a Trump victory as “a once in a lifetime” opportunity in deregulation and reduction in the size of government.

And as someone who runs multiple businesses, Musk is no stranger to downsizing. When he acquired Twitter (now X) in 2022, the company had around 7,800 employees. By 2023, Musk revealed in a BBC interview that the workforce had been cut to just 1,500 — a staggering 80% reduction.

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The challenge

If Musk takes on the efficiency commission, he’ll face a formidable challenge.

The federal government ran a $1.83 trillion deficit for the 2024 fiscal year. This is the amount by which spending exceeded revenue.

When a government that’s already in debt keeps spending beyond its means, it adds to the national debt. As the Treasury noted, “The deficit this year contributed to a national debt of $35.46 trillion through September 2024.”

The national debt is still growing — reaching $35.82 trillion as of late October.

The sheer size of the debt brings another major burden: servicing it. Musk has previously pointed out that interest payments on the national debt now exceed $1 trillion annually. As the debt balloons, Musk warned that eventually, "the only thing we'll be able to pay is interest."

In fiscal 2024, Net Interest was the third-largest federal spending category, according to the Treasury Department. Net Interest surpassed Medicare and National Defense, trailing only Social Security and Health in total spending.

While Musk is optimistic about helping Trump manage America’s fiscal challenges, experts don't share his confidence.

A recent study by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a non-partisan think tank, projected that Trump’s policy proposals could add $7.75 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. Meanwhile, his opponent Kamala Harris’s proposals would increase the debt by $3.95 trillion.

The committee’s report concludes with a sobering outlook: “both the Republican and Democratic candidates for President have put forward campaign plans that would, at best, maintain the status quo and, at worst, add tremendously to our debt and deficits. Neither has a plan to fix the imbalances in the major trust funds.”