Elon Musk, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), humorously described his position during President Donald Trump’s first Cabinet meeting on Wednesday. He referred to himself as “humble tech support” as his agency faced scrutiny over mass firings and a controversial email directive to federal employees.
When asked by President Trump to speak about DOGE, Musk joked, “I actually just call myself a humble tech support here.” He explained that the DOGE team’s primary task is to help modernize outdated government computer systems. “As crazy as it sounds, that is almost a literal description of the work we’re doing,” Musk said. He emphasized that these systems are “extremely old” and contain numerous errors, adding, “We are actually tech support. It’s ironic, but it’s true.”
Although Musk does not hold a formal government position, he is officially classified as a “special government employee” and serves as a “senior adviser to the president.” According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, his influence in the administration has raised concerns, especially after his presence at the Cabinet meeting alongside high-ranking officials.
When a reporter inquired whether any Cabinet members were concerned about Musk’s directives, Trump quickly shut down the question. “Let the Cabinet speak for a second. Anybody unhappy with Elon?” he asked before adding, “If you are, we’ll throw them out of here.” Earlier, Trump dismissed concerns on social media, expressing support for Musk, saying, “ALL CABINET MEMBERS ARE EXTREMELY HAPPY WITH ELON. The Media will see that at the Cabinet Meeting this morning!!!”
Musk also addressed the backlash over a recent email sent to federal employees, which asked them to submit a list of five weekly accomplishments. He clarified, “I think that email was perhaps interpreted as a performance review, but actually it was a pulse check review. Do you have a pulse?” He explained that the purpose of the email was to check if federal employees were active and engaged, with Trump warning that non-respondents risked being fired.
Musk acknowledged that mistakes would be made but emphasized the administration’s commitment to addressing them quickly. He gave an example of how the cancellation of an Ebola prevention program had been promptly reversed after it was mistakenly cut. “We will make mistakes. We won’t be perfect. But when we make mistakes, we’ll fix it very quickly,” Musk said.
The email, originally sent on Saturday with a deadline of Monday midnight, required employees to list five accomplishments or face termination. Musk later extended the deadline and explained that some non-respondents may have been “dead,” referencing the possibility that some federal employees may no longer be active. Following the announcement, Karoline Leavitt reported that over 1 million federal employees had complied with the directive to submit their work accomplishments.
