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Elon Musk is officially working for the government. But what does he actually do?
That's a mystery. His job title? “Unlisted.” His salary? Zero. His power? A lot.
Musk's Shadow Role in Washington
Musk now has a White House access badge and has been described as the head of DOGE—not the meme coin, but the Department of Government Efficiency.
President Donald Trump rebranded the US Digital Service, or USDS, as DOGE and put it under his chief of staff, Susie Wiles. He also created a loophole that lets DOGE hire people faster without going through normal government hiring processes.
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But here’s the weird part: Trump never actually named Musk as the DOGE leader.
A White House document seen by Business Insider lists Musk's role as simply "unlisted."
So, does he run DOGE? No one really knows.
Even Congress Is Confused
Even Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is scratching its head. In a recent regulatory filing, the company said Musk was "involved in other ventures and with the Department of Government Efficiency."
Congress is demanding answers. In a Jan. 27 report, the Congressional Research Service said, “a USDS administrator has not yet been named.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) seems convinced Musk is in charge. She addressed him as "administrator" of DOGE in a formal letter. A Texas state official even called him "DOGE Chairman" after Musk helped shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Yet, when asked, the White House won't confirm or deny anything.
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The Ethics Loophole?
Musk is technically classified as a “special government employee.” That means he can only work 130 days a year in an official capacity.
But John Pelissero, a government ethics expert, thinks this setup is intentional.
“I think this is a strategy to create confusion,” he told Business Insider. "If you are clear that he is the administrator of DOGE, then he has to comply with various rules."
Richard Painter, a former White House ethics lawyer, believes the secrecy might be about financial disclosures.