New Delhi:
The atmosphere inside the Cabinet Room of the White house was tense as US President Donald Trump silently watched a volley of attacks exchanged between billionaire advisor Elon Musk and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Mr Musk accused Mr Rubio of not firing enough staff, while the latter laid out elaborate plans of reorganising the State Department, The New York Times reported.
Mr Rubio was already smarting from the Tesla chief closing down the United States Agency for International Development, which was to be controlled by the former. And probably that is why he did not hold back his grievances in a room of 20 Cabinet members. He said Mr Musk was not considering the 1,500 State Department officials who took early retirement in buyouts, adding a sarcastic jab on whether those people were to be hired again so a show of firing them could be made again.
Eventually, Trump stepped in to nip the prolonged argument, commending Mr Rubio for a “good job”, while commending how he juggled travel, television appearances and an agency. What came to the fore during the exchange was an obvious disagreement between two Trump Cabinet members over Musk’s approach, a sentiment that likely extends to other members given the Department of Government Efficiency chief’s rash approach. It was also interesting that a usually T-shirt clad Musk was seen in a suit and tie, as per The New York Times.
Mr Musk’s sharp exchanges also extended to transportation secretary Sean Duffy, with the latter lamenting the DOGE attempting to lay off air traffic controllers at a time plane crashes are being reported in the US. Mr Musk insisted that people hired under diversity, equity and inclusion programs were working in control towers.
Secretary of Veteran Affairs Doug Collins said Mr Musk’s cuts will affect thousands of veterans, a core constituent of the Trump base.
The meeting saw Trump deciding that secretaries would take charge of affairs and the DOGE team would only advise, among the first instances that the President took an initiative to curb Mr Musk’s unfettered ride. In a post on social media after the meeting, Trump said the next phase of his plan to cut the federal work force would be conducted with a “scalpel” rather than a “hatchet”.
This is likely indication that Mr Musk will likely be expected to refine his approach. During the meeting, however, Mr Musk was seen defending himself, reiterating that he many billion-dollar companies spoke volumes about his knowledge regarding hiring good people. Later, he said on X that the meeting was “very productive”.
Trump denied the Times report on Friday when asked about it during a session with reporters in the Oval Office. “No clash, I was there, you’re just a troublemaker,” he told a reporter who asked about the report. “Elon gets along great with Marco and they’re both doing a fantastic job.”
Trump added, “Marco has done unbelievably as Secretary of State. And Elon is a unique guy and has done a fantastic job.”
