White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed to reporters that Elon Musk is a “special government employee.”
“I can confirm he’s a special government employee. I can also confirm that he has abided by all applicable federal laws. As for his security clearance, I’m not sure, but I can check,” she said.
The Department of the Interior describes a special government employee as an “officer or employee in the Executive Branch of the Federal Government who is appointed to perform important, but limited, services to the Government, with or without compensation, for a period not to exceed 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) a “shadow government,” claiming that it is “conducting a hostile takeover of the federal government.”
He claimed that DOGE is “not a real government agency,” “has no authority to make spending decisions,” “has no authority to shut programs down or to ignore federal law,” and has engaged in conduct that “cannot be allowed to stand.”
Musk responded to Schumer’s allegations, asserting that DOGE provides Americans with the opportunity to “defeat BUREAUcracy, rule of the bureaucrats, and restore DEMOcracy, rule of the people. We’re never going to get another chance like this.”
U.S. Attorney Ed Martin said that those who have “targeted DOGE employees” may face prosecution.
In a letter shared to X, Martin said, “We must keep all our American government employees safe and we must protect the American people’s property.”
He noted that “any threats, confrontations, or other actions in any way that impact their work may break numerous laws,” adding that the Justice Department will “not act like the previous administration who looked the other way as the Antifa and BLM rioters as well as thugs with guns trashed our capital city. We will protect DOGE and other workers no matter what.”