UPDATE (Jan. 21, 8:37 a.m. ET): Vivek Ramaswamy confirmed his departure from the so-called Department of Government Efficiency on Monday. “I’m confident that Elon & team will succeed in streamlining government,” he wrote on X.
During his presidential inaugural address, Donald Trump announced that he’s determined to “restore competence and effectiveness to our federal government,” and to that end, the Republican said he will “establish the brand-new Department of Government Efficiency.”
The news wasn’t exactly surprising, though it was not expected to be part of the new president’s inaugural address. Trump first outlined the basic idea for the advisory panel in September, and the week after Election Day 2024, he announced that the so-called DOGE endeavor would be led by GOP megadonor Elon Musk and failed White House hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy.
At least, that was the original plan. As NBC News reported, one of the co-chairs of the “department” has apparently decided to move on before the panel was even formally created.
Vivek Ramaswamy will launch a campaign for governor in Ohio early next week and is parting ways with President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, two sources familiar with his plans told NBC News.
“He’s leaving DOGE. He’s going to announce early next week for governor,” one of the network’s sources said. “It became increasingly clear over the last week that pursuing the governor’s race and running DOGE was not compatible. He’s leaving on good terms with Trump, Elon and the team.”
We’ve seen plenty of officials in the Republican president’s orbit head for the exit after brief tenures. Anthony Scaramucci, for example, famously exited the White House after 11 days. Matt Gaetz’s tenure as Trump’s choice for attorney general collapsed after eight days. Chad Chronister only lasted three days as Trump’s choice to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration.
But Ramaswamy broke new ground, exiting the made-up “department” before Trump could even sign the paperwork to forge its existence.
Nevertheless, his looming exit leaves the DOGE endeavor solely in the hands of Musk, whose advisory panel will reportedly soon have its own office at the White House complex, not far from the West Wing.
The initiative, however, continues to face real challenges. For one thing, Musk has no background in auditing, the federal budget, or the appropriations process. For another, this “department” will have no statutory power: If “DOGE” comes up with ideas for cuts, the panel might write sternly worded memos filled with suggestions, but that’s about it. Making matters considerably worse, the Republican megadonor overseeing the gambit has already admitted that it won’t be able to meet Trump’s goals. But just as notably, the so-called department is facing multiple new lawsuits that allege the “DOGE” endeavor is failing to comply with disclosure and hiring laws that apply to all advisory panels. The new White House hasn’t yet commented on the litigation. Watch this space.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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