Elon Musk is joining the US government after all as special employee but at no cost to America as he would not be needing any wage for his services.
President Donald Trump previously tapped Musk to lead his Department of Government Efficiency, but the tech billionaire, who also serves as the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, was not technically a federal employee. But now, he is, according to a source familiar with his relationship with Trump administration.
Hours after Musk announced a plan to shutter the U.S.
Agency for International Development (USAID) on X, the social media platform he owns, a White House official told USA TODAY he was officially joining the federal government.
Trump made Musk a “special government employee,” the official said. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later confirmed to reporters that Musk had officially joined the administration. The designation allows Musk to work for the federal government with or without compensation for a limited amount of time. He also received a government email and an office. The administration official said Musk would not receive a paycheck.
Leavitt said she didn’t know the status of Musk’s security clearance or whether he had completed a background check.
“He has abided by all applicable federal laws,” she said.
The status change affirms that Musk is working in lockstep with Trump, whom he said he ran his plans to dismantle USAID by and had the president’s full backing to pursue.
The White House said on Monday that USAID would temporarily be put under Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s control.
It is not clear when Musk received the special government employee designation, which allows him to work for the federal government for 130 days over a year without having to publicly disclose his finances. Former President Joe Biden utilized the same authority to hire a top aide during his administration.
-usatoday