Tesla and Elon Musk have had a tough few weeks in the recent past, as the company shares have tanked, and many have taken it to the street protesting against not just Musk but directing the outrage against the EV maker, Tesla.
Elon Musk Defends Doge
This even led to incidents of arson against company facilities and some alleged incidents of violence against Tesla wagons.
Why is this happening? The answer largely lies in the SpaceX boss's role as the chief of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. Musk has been accused of reckless actions in his purported crusade to cut down the US Federal government's waste.
Now, in what is deemed by some as a face-saving PR exercise, Musk sat down for an interview with right-wing news network Fox News to defend DOGE. He was not alone, as he was accompanied by some of his other colleagues at the quasi-government body.
More Social Security
One crucial point that Musk and his team touched upon was regarding social security in the US and government schemes that have been threatened by Musk and his reckless chainsaw.
Defending DOGE, in one statement, he said, “What we’re doing will help their benefits.. legitimate people as a result of the work of @DOGE will receive more Social Security, not less. I want to emphasize that.. Let the record show that I said this and it will be proven out to be true.”
In addition, speaking about government waste, Musk added, "The sheer amount of waste and fraud in the government, it is astonishing. It’s mind-boggling. We routinely encounter wastes of USD 1 billion or more, casually.”
It needs to be noted that, many of DOGE's claims have been scrutinised, and the quasi-governent body has had to go back and forth with its numbers.
And DOGE has come under fire for meddling with the operations of various departments and their functioning. This has also drawn the ire of Trump's own cabinet members. All this while, the US president has put his weight behind Musk, supporting him.
