Elon Musk, working alongside President Donald Trump, is leading an effort to uncover how federal officials have built personal fortunes while on government salaries. The Department of Government Efficiency Service (DOGE) has been tasked with investigating financial records to determine whether corruption has played a role in the accumulation of wealth by bureaucrats.
Musk has publicly questioned how individuals in government positions have acquired assets far beyond what their salaries would suggest. “We do find it rather odd that there are quite a few people in the bureaucracy who have a salary of a few hundred thousand dollars but somehow managed to accrue tens of millions,” he said. “We’re just curious as to where it came from.”
Trump signed an executive order to expand DOGE’s authority, allowing Musk’s team to conduct financial audits and require federal agencies to justify their spending. The order also directs agencies to consult with DOGE on plans to reduce staffing and cut costs.
Among the agencies under scrutiny is USAID, which Musk has pointed to as an example of poor financial oversight. He noted that many payments lack proper documentation, leading to millions in potentially unaccounted-for taxpayer dollars. “The reason that departments can’t pass audits is because the payments don’t have categorization codes,” Musk said.
DOGE has already canceled 89 contracts worth $881 million as part of its cost-cutting efforts. However, the administration has not provided details on the specific contracts that were cut or why they were deemed wasteful.
The initiative has sparked legal challenges, with labor unions and state attorneys general filing lawsuits against the administration’s actions. Despite this, Trump and Musk insist that their mission is about ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly and eliminating financial corruption in Washington.
