POLITICO
Elon Musk has already achieved his first cut at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency: his co-leader Vivek Ramaswamy. (Ramaswamy’s ill-received holiday rant on X by about H-1B visas apparently hastened his demise.) ➡️ https://t.co/tUW5uuSm1w pic.twitter.com/2Mlc5KZ84e
— POLITICO (@politico) January 21, 2025
Elon Musk has already achieved his first cut at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency: his co-leader Vivek Ramaswamy.
Musk, the tech tycoon and Donald Trump confidant, made it known that he wanted Ramaswamy out of DOGE in recent days, according to three people familiar with Musk’s preferences who, like others for this article, were granted anonymity to discuss them. An ill-received holiday rant on X by Ramaswamy about H-1B visas apparently hastened his demise.
Just 69 days after Trump announced the team, Ramaswamy is now leaving DOGE and planning to announce a run for Ohio governor next week. Musk’s ability to ice out Ramaswamy, who for a variety of reasons had irked some Republicans in Trump’s circle, is the latest sign of his influence in the incoming administration. And it presages an encore of all of the infighting that marked Trump’s first term.
Ramaswamy “just burned through the bridges and he finally burned Elon,” said a Republican strategist close to Trump advisers. “Everyone wants him out of Mar-a-Lago, out of D.C.”
One main reason for some Republicans’ frustration with Ramaswamy was a post he made on X during a discussion of H-1B visas. In late December, Ramaswamy criticized American culture, saying that tech companies hire foreign workers in part because of a mindset in the country that has “venerated mediocrity over excellence.”
“They wanted him out before the tweet — but kicked him to the curb when that came out,” said one of the three people familiar with his departure.
A person close to DOGE said Musk did not think it was feasible for him to campaign for office while working on DOGE.
In a statement, Trump transition spokesperson Anna Kelly praised Ramaswamy, saying he “played a critical role in helping us create DOGE” and that his plan to run for governor “requires him to remain outside of DOGE based on the structure that we announced today.”
Ramaswamy maintained to confidants as late as Saturday evening that he was actively involved in DOGE, saying he was at work writing executive orders, according to six people who had spoken with him. But a person familiar with the arrangement said he had done almost no DOGE-related work since early December…
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