Elon Musk And Vivek Ramaswamy has outlined an ambitious vision for overhauling the federal government, prioritizing drastic regulatory cuts and workforce reductions. Writing in a joint op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, the billionaire entrepreneur and biotech founder shared his plans for startups. Department of Government Performance (DOGE), an initiative spearheaded by President-elect Donald Trump. Both described their approach as a bold move to return power to elected officials and reduce the influence of unelected bureaucrats.
“Our nation was founded on the basic idea that the people we elect run the government. That’s not how America works today,” he said, adding that “most legal orders are laws made by Congress. are not but ‘rules’ issued by unelected bureaucrats – by the thousands every year.”
Musk and Ramaswamy argued that the system, protected by civil service protections, had become an “anti-democratic” apparatus that burdened taxpayers with unnecessary costs. He pledged to implement sweeping reforms through the DOGE, which he described as a “weak team of small-government crusaders” working closely with the White House Office of Management and Budget.
A five-day work week for federal employees
Musk and Ramaswamy also proposed radical reductions in the workforce, including requiring federal employees to work in-person five days a week—a move they believe will trigger voluntary resignations. . “If federal employees don’t want to show up, American taxpayers shouldn’t be paying for their privilege to stay home during the Covid era,” he wrote.
Cost-saving measures were another central focus, with the pair estimating a potential reduction of more than $500 billion in unauthorized spending. He highlighted programs that would be cut, such as $535 million in annual funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and nearly $300 million for Planned Parenthood as examples of questionable spending.
‘Driving change through existing legislation’
According to Musk and Ramaswamy, the group will take advantage of recent Supreme Court decisions, such as West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency and Luperbright v. Raimondo, to target regulations that do not have clear congressional approval. “We will focus exclusively on making changes through executive action based on existing legislation rather than passing new laws,” he wrote, calling the U.S. Constitution his “North Star.”
One of his first steps involved identifying regulations that Trump could immediately rescind through executive action. They said it would free businesses and individuals from the constraints of “illegal regulations” and stimulate the economy. “When the president rescinds thousands of such regulations, critics will charge executive overreach. In fact, it will correct the thousands of regulations enacted by executive fiat.” He noted.
‘A historic occasion’
Acknowledging the possibility of political and legal pushback, Musk and Ramaswamy expressed confidence in their mandate. “With a decisive electoral mandate and a 6-3 conservative majority in the Supreme Court, the DOGE has a historic opportunity to structurally reduce the federal government,” he declared.
The authors set an ambitious deadline of July 4, 2026, to finalize their reforms, framing their mission as a transformative effort to restore governance to its constitutional roots. “We expect to prevail,” he concluded, signaling his readiness to take on entrenched interests in Washington.