President Donald Trump told cabinet secretary during a meeting Thursday that staffing decisions will be left to them, not the efficiency of Elon Musk and his government.
Trump has directed cabinet members to work with Doge on spending and labor cuts, making it clear that the final job cuts are at the discretion of the department’s leaders, NBC News reported.
“We had just met most of our secretaries, Elon and others, and it was very positive,” Trump said in The Society of Truth. “It’s very important that we cut the levels to where they should be, but it’s also important to keep the best and most productive people.”
“If the secretaries learn and understand the people who work in different departments, they can be very accurate about who will remain and who will go. We say ‘scalpel’ rather than ‘hatch’,” Trump added.
The drastic cuts that Doge has implemented have led to increased lawsuits, voter unrest and concerns from Republicans in Congress.
Trump’s message also rarely cut mask authority and moved to help rebuild the federal government, sometimes stepping on the toes of Cabinet Secretaries.
Several members of Trump’s Cabinet were broken when Musk recently ordered federal employees to outline their work or face termination.
At the same time, Trump praised Musk and Doge after meeting Thursday.
“I think they did a great job,” he told reporters.
Musk called the meeting “very productive” in X’s post. He ruled the first gathering last month that called Doge a “support function,” helping federal agencies help “reduce fraud and waste by 15%.”