WASHINGTON (TNND) — President Donald Trump said that he would like Elon Musk to lead the Department of Government Efficiency for “as long as possible” during a conversation with reporters on Air Force One Thursday evening.
These remarks were made after The National News Desk’s Kayla Gaskins asked Trump about DOGE continuing after Musk leaves the White House.
Musk is currently a special government employee as the head of DOGE. Speical government employees are not allowed to work for the federal government for “no more than 130 days” in a calendar year, according to the Office of Government Ethics.
Special government employees were created in 1962 to hire employees for specific short-term goals.
The timeframe is set to expire on May 30, as Musk officially began his work with DOGE after Trump took office on Jan. 20.
Earlier this week, Politico reported that Musk was stepping away from his position to focus on his business initiatives.
The White House called the report “garbage,” with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posting on X, “Elon Musk and President Trump have both *publicly* stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete.”
Trump told reporters that “Elon is fantastic. He’s a patriot” and that he can stay “as long as he’d like.”
On whether or not Musk would be appointed to a new position, Trump said that is could be a possibility as he thinks “Elon’s great,” but “he also has a company to run, or a number of companies to run.”