President Donald Trump says the Department of Government Efficiency simply is fulfilling a campaign promise to Americans.
Trump, in an excerpt of a Fox News interview scheduled to be televised before Sunday’s Super Bowl, said he ran on finding ways to reduce spending and streamlining the bureaucracy.
"I don’t know if it's kickbacks or what's going on," Trump told Bret Baier of the government's financial state. "Look, I ran on this, and the people want me to find it. And I’ve had a great help with Elon Musk, who has been terrific."
Musk and DOGE have come under fire from Democrats after it was reported the Tesla and SpaceX’s advisory group found much alleged partisan and wasteful spending.
Baier asked Trump whether he trusted Musk, whose group in recent days has been focused on the Department of Treasury.
"Trust Elon?" Trump asked with surprise in his voice at the question. "He's not gaining anything. In fact, I wonder how he can devote the time to it. He's so into it.
"But I told him to do that, then I'm going to tell him very soon, like maybe in 24 hours, to go check the Department of Education. He’s going to find the same thing. Then I'm going to go, Go to the military. Let's check the military. We're going to find billions, hundreds of millions of dollars of fraud and abuse.
"You know, the people elected me on that."
During an interview Sunday on NBC’s "Meet the Press," national security adviser Mike Waltz suggested the Pentagon's shipbuilding processes could be an area of particular interest for DOGE.
"There is plenty to look into in shipbuilding, which is an absolute mess," Waltz said.
A federal judge issued an emergency order early Saturday blocking DOGE from accessing personal and financial data for millions of Americans stored at the Treasury Department, court documents showed.
U.S. District Judge Paul A. Engelmayer's order restricts giving access to Treasury Department payment systems and other data to "all political appointees, special government employees, and government employees detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department.
Trump’s interview was scheduled to be broadcast at 3 p.m. ET before the Kansas City Chiefs play against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX at New Orleans, Louisiana.