Trump defends Musk email, DOGE at Cabinet meeting

President Trump on Wednesday offered a full-throated endorsement of Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency as they slash government spending and fire workers while trying to brush off purported conflicts between the tech billionaire and members of his Cabinet.

The drama unfolded at Mr. Trump’s first Cabinet meeting of his second term. Mr. Musk, who is not a member of Mr. Trump’s formal Cabinet, largely dominated the meeting while Senate-confirmed officials running large government agencies looked on.

Mr. Trump insisted his Cabinet secretaries were supportive of DOGE canceling contracts, firing workers, shuttering departments and slashing spending. Mr. Musk has started to run into opposition from Cabinet members after an email was sent at his behest to 2.3 million federal workers asking them to document five things they accomplished last week. Workers were told they’d be fired if they didn’t respond to the email.

Some agency officials reportedly told workers to ignore the email.

The president at the Cabinet meeting downplayed reports that Cabinet secretaries have grown weary of Mr. Musk and DOGE, but also acknowledged their frustration.

“They have a lot of respect for Elon and that he’s doing this, and some disagree a little bit, but I will tell you for the most part I think everyone’s not only happy, they’re thrilled,” Mr. Trump said.

Later, the president urged his Cabinet secretaries to “speak up” if they were unhappy with Mr. Musk but also joked that if anybody raised a complaint, they’d be thrown out of the room.

The joke was met with some nervous laughter, but no one spoke up.

Mr. Trump defended Mr. Musk’s email and even wants another round of messages demanding federal workers detail their feats.

“I think Elon wants to, and I think it’s a good idea because, you know, those people, as I said before, they’re on the bubble,” he said, questioning whether some workers exist.

Mr. Musk, the world’s richest person, said the email was not a personnel review “but a pulse review” to ensure fictional or dead employees weren’t collecting paychecks. He argued that anyone with a heartbeat and neurons could respond.

“There are fictional individuals collecting paychecks,” Mr. Musk said. “Are they alive and can they write an email?”

He said the U.S. can’t continue to spend money at its current rate or else it will find itself in “de facto bankruptcy,” adding that DOGE can help the president and agencies achieve savings.

“That’s the reason I’m here and getting a lot of death threats, by the way,” Mr. Musk added. “I mean, I like to stack them up, you know?”

Mr. Musk admitted that DOGE has made some mistakes, revealing that it briefly canceled Ebola prevention efforts before reinstating them.

Later in the meeting, Mr. Trump said Environmental Protection Agency head Lee Zeldin revealed that he could cut up to 65% of its workforce.

Moments before the Cabinet meeting, the Office of Personnel Management and the Office of Management and Budget sent a memo directing federal agencies to prepare for large-scale layoffs. The memo also requested the agencies develop reorganization plans to cope with the slimmed-down workforce by March 13.

“The federal government is costly, inefficient and deeply in debt,” the memo said. “At the same time, it is not producing results for the American public.

“Instead, tax dollars are being siphoned off to fund unproductive and unnecessary programs that benefit radical interest groups while hurting hardworking American citizens.”

The memo said agencies should “focus on maximum elimination of functions that are not statutorily mandated,” like duplicate programs or unnecessary management layers and positions that are “noncritical.” It also called for regional field offices to be closed or consolidated.

This plan is part of the Trump administration’s push to restructure the government and cut waste.

Phase 1, which focuses on cuts and reductions, should be submitted by March 13, according to the memo.

Phase 2, which will focus on the productivity of the agency, should be submitted by April 14, for implementation by late September.

The memo noted that any position that is necessary for law enforcement and public safety, border and national security, immigration enforcement, positions nominated and appointed by the president or Senate, and officials in the Executive Office of the President, along with the military and postal service, are exempt from review.

Similarly, Social Security, Medicare and veteran services are also excluded.