Trump picks Musk, Ramaswamy to run new dept of govt efficiency and trim bureaucracy
Hindustan Times|November 14, 2024
Donald Trump has asked Elon Musk, the world's richest man who is also his campaign donor and adviser, and Vivek Ramaswamy, the Indian-origin Republican presidential aspirant turned supporter, to offer advice on how to slash and restructure the US federal government.
Prashant Jha
Trump picks Musk, Ramaswamy to run new dept of govt efficiency and trim bureaucracy

In a statement on Tuesday evening eastern time (Wednesday morning IST), Trump said that the "great" Musk, "working in conjunction" with the "American patriot" Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.

"Together these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditure, and restructure federal agencies," Trump said, terming it the Manhattan Project of these times. He said the department will wrap up its work by July 4, 2026. "A smaller government, with more efficiency and less bureaucracy, will be the perfect gift to America on the 250th anniversary of The Declaration of Independence."

Trump said that DOGE will "provide advice and guidance from outside the government" but it will work closely with White House and the Office of Management and Budget to "drive large scale structural reform and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before".

Ironically, the name of the cryptocurrency that Musk has championed since for several years now is also Doge, short for Dogecoin, named as a joke when it was set up in 2013.

Ramaswamy is a Harvard-and Yale-educated lawyer turned entrepreneur who shot into national prominence during the Republican presidential primaries in 2023. Positioning himself as an "America First" candidate, Musk withdrew after coming fourth in the Iowa primary in January this year and threw his weight behind Trump.

A university classmate of Vice President elect JD Vance and his wife Usha, Ramaswamy was a top media surrogate for Trump during the campaign, drew praise from President-elect for his eloquence, and laid out his intellectual position as one of national libertarianism.

This story is from the November 14, 2024 edition of Hindustan Times.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the November 14, 2024 edition of Hindustan Times.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM HINDUSTAN TIMESView All
Bitcoin Bonanza? Don't Overlook Tax And Reporting
Hindustan Times

Bitcoin Bonanza? Don't Overlook Tax And Reporting

Bitcoin has surpassed its all-time high each day for the past week. On Wednesday, the token's price peaked at about $89,828, a 112% year-to-date surge.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 14, 2024
Hindustan Times

Mahayuti to pick CM after polls through a democratic process'

The Mahayuti is headed towards a strong showing in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections and the winning lawmakers will sit together and take a decision on the chief minister's position in a democratic process, deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said on Wednesday.

time-read
1 min  |
November 14, 2024
Top court cracks down on bulldozer justice by states
Hindustan Times

Top court cracks down on bulldozer justice by states

Describing a house as \"an embodiment of the collective hopes of a family or individuals' stability and security\", the Supreme Court on Wednesday laid down nationwide guidelines to curb arbitrary demolitions by state authorities, marking a significant moment in the battle against what has come to be known as \"bulldozer justice\"-- the practice of razing the properties of people accused of crimes, and, sometimes, of their families, often using earthmovers or bulldozers, without following due process.

time-read
5 mins  |
November 14, 2024
Batting time: Preparations in lockdown mode for India
Hindustan Times

Batting time: Preparations in lockdown mode for India

All-out attack failed against New Zealand, and Aussie opener Usman Khawaja seems to have a point

time-read
3 mins  |
November 14, 2024
Hindustan Times

Number of crorepati taxpayers surges 323% in 10 yrs

The number of taxpayers with 1 crore plus gross annual income surged 323% to 350,129 in 2023-24 from 82,836 in 2013-14 while the number of income-tax assesses saw a 120% jump in last one decade to 79,212,146, signifying the government's policy nudge to deepen and widen the tax base while shielding the middle class, according government officials aware of the matter.

time-read
1 min  |
November 14, 2024
Hindustan Times

WHOLESALE PV SALES SLOW IN OCTOBER DESPITE FESTIVE DEMAND

India's wholesale passenger vehicle sales grew marginally year-on-year to 393,000 units in October despite two major festivals celebrated during the month.

time-read
1 min  |
November 14, 2024
Fox News host picked as US def chief
Hindustan Times

Fox News host picked as US def chief

President-elect Donald Trump has said that the new secretary of defence Pete Hegseth is a true believer in America First approach

time-read
2 mins  |
November 14, 2024
Biden meets Trump, promises smooth transition of power
Hindustan Times

Biden meets Trump, promises smooth transition of power

Donald Trump left White House on January 20, 2021, as a bitter man angry at the 2020 election results that he continued to reject, as an isolated man whose own party sought to distance itself from Trump after the mob insurrection on US Capitol, as a politician whose political obituary was being widely written in Washington DC and beyond, and as a president who had broken the tradition of peaceful transfer of power.

time-read
1 min  |
November 14, 2024
Hindustan Times

COP29: Developing nations start work on new climate finance text

After developing countries rejected the first draft on the new collective quantified goal (NCQG), on Tuesday, co-chairs of the programme on NCQG at the COP 29 climate talks in Baku released another iteration, on Wednesday morning that runs into 34 pages.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 14, 2024
Hindustan Times

Cautious rebuilding of Delhi-Kabul ties

The Taliban's appointment of a consul for the Afghan mission in Mumbai appears to be part of a nascent and cautious process of engagement between the two sides.

time-read
1 min  |
November 14, 2024