GOP Officials Laud Trump's Limited Directive to Musk: ‘He's your partner... That is what we like’
GOP officials commended the initiatives of the Department of Government Efficiency, under Elon Musk's leadership, while underscoring the limited scope of Trump's mandate for the tech mogul.
TroibNews 
Two senior Republicans are reinforcing President Donald Trump’s recent messaging regarding Elon Musk’s influence, emphasizing that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative cannot exceed the authority of Cabinet officials to terminate federal employees.
“Elon Musk does not have the power to fire people,” Republican Florida Sen. Rick Scott stated on CNN’s “State of the Union” with anchor Jake Tapper on Sunday. “The president of the United States is Donald Trump, and the agency heads are the ones who manage each of their departments.”
Scott’s remarks followed a tense Cabinet meeting where administration officials voiced their frustration with Musk’s attempts to influence staffing and policy decisions within their agencies. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Musk reportedly clashed over DOGE employees' attempts to lay off traffic controllers. Duffy later characterized the meeting as “productive” in a post to X on Friday but hinted at his broader disapproval of Musk’s endeavor to reshape the federal bureaucracy.
“The President's approach of a scalpel versus a hatchet and better coordination between Secretaries and DOGE is the right approach to revolutionizing the way our government is run,” Duffy added.
During the meeting, Trump informed his Cabinet officials that Musk is not authorized to make any staffing or policy decisions—marking the president’s initial significant effort to restrict Musk’s authority. Trump emphasized that DOGE is intended to serve in an advisory capacity to agencies, and it is the Cabinet officials who ultimately make final decisions regarding staffing, policies, and their execution.
Scott is not the only GOP official reiterating Trump’s latest stance on Musk’s role. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed appreciation for DOGE’s efforts during a Sunday interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with Kristen Welker. However, when asked by Welker whether he or Musk runs his agency, Lutnick described Musk as his “partner.”
“Elon Musk is your partner,” he said. “He's your partner in technology, he's your partner in thought, he's your partner in doing. What President Trump made clear, is that Elon is your partner. That is what we like.”
Scott, who engages with Musk regularly and is a notable advocate for his initiatives, introduced Musk to a meeting with other Senate Republicans last week to address growing apprehensions about DOGE’s strategies in identifying fraud and waste in government spending. When Tapper pressed him about Duffy’s concerns regarding DOGE’s methods, Scott maintained his support for Musk’s mandate.
“You do your best every day,” Scott asserted. “What they're trying to do is rein in government, right? Are they going to be perfect? No one is perfect. When they make a mistake, are they going to fix it? Yeah.”
Trump’s updated guidance for DOGE follows mass layoffs and threats to dismantle numerous government agencies initiated by Musk, which have generated anxiety among the federal workforce. Despite the controversy surrounding DOGE, Lutnick affirmed that Cabinet officials are united in their collaboration with Musk to reduce government spending.
“You have the best technologist and richest guy in the world saying ‘I’ll help you,’ come on, we want his help,” Lutnick stated.
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
“Elon Musk does not have the power to fire people,” Republican Florida Sen. Rick Scott stated on CNN’s “State of the Union” with anchor Jake Tapper on Sunday. “The president of the United States is Donald Trump, and the agency heads are the ones who manage each of their departments.”
Scott’s remarks followed a tense Cabinet meeting where administration officials voiced their frustration with Musk’s attempts to influence staffing and policy decisions within their agencies. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Musk reportedly clashed over DOGE employees' attempts to lay off traffic controllers. Duffy later characterized the meeting as “productive” in a post to X on Friday but hinted at his broader disapproval of Musk’s endeavor to reshape the federal bureaucracy.
“The President's approach of a scalpel versus a hatchet and better coordination between Secretaries and DOGE is the right approach to revolutionizing the way our government is run,” Duffy added.
During the meeting, Trump informed his Cabinet officials that Musk is not authorized to make any staffing or policy decisions—marking the president’s initial significant effort to restrict Musk’s authority. Trump emphasized that DOGE is intended to serve in an advisory capacity to agencies, and it is the Cabinet officials who ultimately make final decisions regarding staffing, policies, and their execution.
Scott is not the only GOP official reiterating Trump’s latest stance on Musk’s role. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick expressed appreciation for DOGE’s efforts during a Sunday interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” with Kristen Welker. However, when asked by Welker whether he or Musk runs his agency, Lutnick described Musk as his “partner.”
“Elon Musk is your partner,” he said. “He's your partner in technology, he's your partner in thought, he's your partner in doing. What President Trump made clear, is that Elon is your partner. That is what we like.”
Scott, who engages with Musk regularly and is a notable advocate for his initiatives, introduced Musk to a meeting with other Senate Republicans last week to address growing apprehensions about DOGE’s strategies in identifying fraud and waste in government spending. When Tapper pressed him about Duffy’s concerns regarding DOGE’s methods, Scott maintained his support for Musk’s mandate.
“You do your best every day,” Scott asserted. “What they're trying to do is rein in government, right? Are they going to be perfect? No one is perfect. When they make a mistake, are they going to fix it? Yeah.”
Trump’s updated guidance for DOGE follows mass layoffs and threats to dismantle numerous government agencies initiated by Musk, which have generated anxiety among the federal workforce. Despite the controversy surrounding DOGE, Lutnick affirmed that Cabinet officials are united in their collaboration with Musk to reduce government spending.
“You have the best technologist and richest guy in the world saying ‘I’ll help you,’ come on, we want his help,” Lutnick stated.
Alejandro Jose Martinez for TROIB News
