Washington:
Elon Musk has said he would work with US President Donald Trump for as long as he “can be helpful,” as the pair dismissed concerns over possible conflicts of interest due to the tech tycoon’s work with the White House.
“I’ll be as helpful as long as I can be helpful,” Musk said when asked in a Fox News interview alongside Trump if he expected to work with the administration for the president’s four-year term.
Trump has vowed to slash government spending since returning to office last month, with Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) tasked with carrying out that effort.
Musk, the world’s richest person and leading Trump donor, has deployed vast powers granted to him by the president to restructure and dismantle federal agencies.
However, the White House has said Musk is not an official employee of DOGE and has “no formal authority to make government decisions.”
The unprecedented cost-cutting drive has raised conflict-of-interest questions, given that many of the targeted agencies have regulatory oversight on elements of Musk’s businesses.
Trump showered praise on Musk, the head of SpaceX and Tesla, in the Fox interview excerpts aired on Wednesday, calling the billionaire “brilliant,” “honest” and a “very good, solid businessman.”
He also dismissed concerns raised by critics that Musk has enormous conflicts of interest as a major government contractor.
“If there’s any conflict, he will stop it. But if he didn’t, I’d stop it. I’d see if there’s a conflict,” Trump said.
“We’re talking about big stuff, but he’s under a pretty big microscope. I mean, everybody’s watching him.
“If there’s a conflict, you’re going to be reading about it within about two minutes after the conflict,” he said.
Musk said DOGE was publicizing its actions on its website and that the transparency would hold him accountable.
“The possibility of me getting away with something is zero percent,” Musk said. “I’m scrutinized to a ridiculous degree.”
Asked about Musk’s official position, Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday that the businessman was a “patriot.”
“So you know, you could call him an employee, you can call him a consultant. You can call him whatever you want. But he’s a patriot,” Trump said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
