President Donald Trump signaled on Thursday that his cabinet secretaries are the ones who will dictate the staffing at their departments, not senior adviser Elon Musk, the president’s top ally.
“The Golden Age of America has just begun!” Trump posted on social media. “Over the past six weeks, our Administration has delivered on promises like no Administration before it, always putting America First!”
“DOGE has been an incredible success, and now that we have my Cabinet in place, I have instructed the Secretaries and Leadership to work with DOGE on Cost Cutting measures and Staffing,” he continued. “As the Secretaries learn about, and understand, the people working for the various Departments, they can be very precise as to who will remain, and who will go.”
He said that the cabinet secretaries will use the “scalpel” instead of the “hatchet” when it comes to trimming the fat within their departments.
“The combination of them, Elon, DOGE, and other great people will be able to do things at a historic level,” he wrote.
The president’s post came as several news organizations reported that Trump informed his cabinet secretaries that they are in charge of the departments they oversee, not Musk.
Trump reportedly told his cabinet members that Musk, who was in the room for the meeting, is working in the administration to advise on various matters, but does not have authority to make unilateral decisions.
Musk wrote on X that the meeting was “very productive.”
Very productive meeting pic.twitter.com/RrMYb3CGh5
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 6, 2025
“We just had a meeting with most of the Secretaries, Elon, and others, and it was a very positive one,” Trump wrote. “It’s very important that we cut levels down to where they should be, but it’s also important to keep the best and most productive people.”
“We’re going to have these meetings every two weeks until that aspect of this very necessary job is done,” he added. “The relationships between everybody in that room are extraordinary. They all want to get to the exact same place, which is, simply, to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
