Alongside Musk, Trump orders reduction in size of federal government

President Donald Trump made a rare appearance in the Oval Office on Tuesday with his most powerful adviser, Elon Musk, before signing an executive order to continue reducing the size of the federal government.

The Associated Press news agency managed to obtain a White House document regarding the executive order that aims to advance Mr. Musk's work to reduce government spending through the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE for short.

Mr. Musk said that there are some good employees in the federal government, but they need to be held accountable for the work they do, while calling the federal bureaucracy a fourth branch of government "not elected by vote."

"The people voted for a major reform in government and this is happening," he said. "This is what democracy means."

It was the first time Mr. Musk has been questioned by reporters since joining President Trump's administration as a special agent with wide influence over federal agencies. He is also the world's richest individual and the owner of social platform X.

Mr. Musk has been criticized for having too much power and no oversight. Despite concerns about a lack of transparency, Mr. Musk has described himself as an open book.

The White House document states that "agencies will undertake plans for large-scale federal workforce reductions and will determine which agency components (or agencies themselves) can be eliminated or merged because their functions are not required by law."

The document also says that agencies must “hire no more than one employee for every four who leave the federal government.” Exceptions exist in cases involving immigration, law enforcement, and public safety.

President Trump and Elon Musk are asking federal employees to resign in exchange for financial incentives, though their plan is on hold while a judge reviews its legality.

Under the plan, employees who resign will be paid through September 30. Administration officials said more than 65,000 employees have accepted the offer./ Voice of America (A2 Televizion)