Elon Musk's Doge quietly closes eight months ahead of schedule

Initiative scheduled to end on July 4 next year was symbol of Trump administration's commitment to cutting government spending

Billionaire Elon Musk initially led the Department of Government Efficiency within Donald Trump's administration. AFP

US President Donald Trump's so-called Department of Government Efficiency – originally led by billionaire Elon Musk – has disbanded with eight months left in its mandate.

The initiative, which was scheduled to end on July 4 next year, was a symbol of Mr Trump's commitment to cutting government spending, but the agency's promised trillions of dollars in savings never materialised.

“That doesn't exist,” Office of Personnel Management director Scott Kupor told Reuters this month when asked about the department's status, adding that it was no longer a “centralised entity”.

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The OPM has since taken over many of the functions of Doge, Reuters reported.

The department was established in January after Mr Trump returned to office. Mr Musk, a key ally to Mr Trump during his campaign and reportedly spending more than $100 million to help the Republican win, was announced as its head.

Doge made dramatic forays across Washington in the early months of Mr Trump's second term to rapidly shrink federal agencies, cut their budgets or redirect their work to administration priorities.

Mr Musk and Doge moved to gut federal agencies, including the US Agency for International Development and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was set up after the 2008 financial crisis.

Over the course of a few months, Doge shrank public-sector employment by more than 290,000 jobs – including federal employees and contractors – and was the leading reason for job cut announcements this year, according to a report by outplacement company Challenger, Gray and Christmas.

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Mr Musk, who left the department in May, had initially claimed Doge would cut up to $2 trillion a year in government spending. But Doge claims on its website that it has saved taxpayers $214 billion through “asset sales, contract/lease cancellations and renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletion, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings and workforce reductions”.

That figure is, however, disputed. In August, Politico reported that Doge has saved only about 5 per cent of what it claims. CNN in May reported that half of the claimed savings were backed by supporting documentation.

Mr Trump and Mr Musk publicly fell out when the Tesla founder left the government. The President at one point said he would consider deporting Mr Musk, while Mr Musk said he would found his own political party.

The National has contacted the White House for comment.