White House Clarifies: Elon Musk Not in Charge of DOGE

A personnel official from the Trump administration asserts that Musk possesses "no actual or formal authority to make government decisions."

White House Clarifies: Elon Musk Not in Charge of DOGE
Elon Musk is not the leader of DOGE, the enigmatic initiative during the Trump administration aimed at reshaping the federal bureaucracy. In fact, the White House clarified in court papers on Monday night that he is not formally part of it.

In a three-page declaration, a senior White House personnel official disclosed that Musk holds the title of “senior adviser to the president,” a role in which he possesses “no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself.”

This revelation, presented to a federal court by Joshua Fisher, director of the White House's Office of Administration, seems to contradict the public statements made by President Donald Trump and Musk regarding the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, which many view as a project driven by Musk to downsize and reform essential parts of the federal government.

The sworn statement further complicates the narrative surrounding DOGE. Fisher confirmed Musk is not the official administrator of the office, which Trump established within the Executive Office of the President, yet did not specify who the actual administrator is.

Despite this technical designation, it doesn’t exclude Musk from being the principal decision-maker for DOGE, which is staffed largely with his allies and may still be influenced by his presence in the White House. Musk has publicly discussed DOGE’s initiatives, claimed significant influence over its operations, and appeared with Trump to promote its objectives.

Trump has gone so far as to credit Musk with leading DOGE.

“I'm going to tell [Elon Musk] very soon, like maybe in 24 hours, to go check the Department of Education,” Trump stated in a Super Bowl interview with Fox News anchor Bret Baier. “He's going to find the same thing … Then I'm going to go, go to the military. Let's check the military.”

However, the filing from Fisher suggests a technical separation that raises significant questions about accountability for DOGE’s rapid initiatives, which have alarmed federal employees and sparked concerns about potential data breaches within some of the government’s most secure databases. Fisher likened Musk’s role to that of Anita Dunn, a senior adviser to President Joe Biden who held a comparable title and role in the White House.

Fisher’s statement was submitted to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is considering a legal motion from Democratic attorneys general aimed at preventing Musk and his DOGE associates from continuing to exert influence within the federal government. The states argue that Musk's considerable power may be in violation of the constitution’s “Appointments Clause,” which mandates that senior executive branch officials must be confirmed by the Senate.

Chutkan indicated on Monday that a decision on the state’s emergency motion to restrain Musk will be made within a day. She appeared unlikely to grant the motion but requested additional information from the Trump administration regarding the widespread firings that DOGE seems to have been orchestrating throughout the government.

During a hearing earlier on Monday, Justice Department attorney Joshua Gardner refrained from providing details about the job cuts DOGE has been associated with, despite Chutkan's request for specifics. He stated that the administration was not ready to give a “programmatic representation” about potential future redundancies.

At the same hearing, Gardner reiterated that all job cuts carried out thus far have been managed by personnel within federal agencies rather than by DOGE officials directly.

Aarav Patel contributed to this report for TROIB News