Dubbed the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE in reference to an internet meme, the effort has been hailed by Republicans concerned about spending levels and scrutinized by critics who point to Musk’s close relationship with Trump and extensive contracts with federal agencies.

“Putting the world’s richest government contractor in charge of a project to cut government programs and regulations is the definition of a conflict of interest,” said Walter Shaub, director of the Office of Government Ethics under former President Barack Obama. “If the Trump administration adopts Musk’s recommendations, the government could be putting the American taxpayers’ money to work for Musk instead of for the American people.”

Trump announced that Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would lead the effort, which will terminate on July 4, 2026, the nation’s 250th birthday.

“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies – Essential to the ‘Save America’ Movement,” Trump said in a statement.

“This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in government waste, which is a lot of people!” Musk said in the release.

While short on specifics, Trump said the DOGE could be the “Manhattan Project of our time” and that Republicans have dreamed of it for a very long time. Musk and Ramaswamy will provide advice and partner with the White House Office of Management and Budget to drive reforms.

However, there is a fairly long tradition of similar efforts in Washington.

President Ronald Reagan created the efficiency-minded Grace Commission in 1982, promising that it would “drain the swamp.” President Bill Clinton established the National Partnership for Reinventing Government in 1993 with the goal of making the government “work better, cost less, and get results Americans care about,” keeping it active until 1998.

Most recently, Obama created what became known as the Simpson-Bowles Commission in 2010, promising that it would help cut the national deficit.

A Trump spokeswoman did not respond to DOGE-related questions from the Washington Examiner. Biden White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre responded “no comment” when asked about the DOGE during Wednesday’s news conference.

Musk vowed at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally to cut the federal budget by “at least” $2 trillion, which is nearly one-third of the entire federal outlay for fiscal 2024.

But Musk’s critics point out that Musk himself has received more than $15 billion in government contracts over the last decade through Starlink and SpaceX. He has spent a lot of time with Trump lately, traveling with him to Washington for meetings on Wednesday after spending roughly $200 million to help Trump get elected.

Richard Painter, the chief ethics lawyer to former President George W. Bush, said that if Musk or Ramaswamy became federal employees, they would be subject to a criminal conflict of interest statute. They might also choose to recuse themselves from any matter that could have a direct effect on their companies or seek a waiver, which he said would be highly unusual.

But if the pair operate completely outside of the government and simply make recommendations, as Trump has suggested, those steps could be avoided. Painter said the key to avoiding ethical problems will be consistency and clarity of mission.

“They need to put it in one box or another and not play games with the rules,” Painter said.

Musk himself has promised “maximum transparency” in the new role and encouraged people to send feedback via X, the social media site he owns.

The announcement is already drawing scrutiny from Democrats, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) posting that “The Office of Government Efficiency is off to a great start with split leadership: two people to do the work of one person. Yeah, this seems REALLY efficient.”

Scott Amey, general counsel at the Project on Government Oversight, sounded a note of caution about how effective the DOGE will be.

“The commission should consider that most of the time when this happens, it just moves money from the government bucket to the contractor bucket,” he said, referencing a 2011 study. “There needs to be a robust look at whether it will save money in the long run. The amount of money spent on contractors has gone up over the years, and contractors are more expensive.”