For the very first time - Elon Musk, who is now a top advisor to US President Donald Trump, has just joined Trump in the Oval Office to take questions from the media.
This comes as Trump signs a new executive order seeking to "significantly reduce the size of government" by instructing heads of federal departments and agencies to undertake plans for "large-scale reductions in force".
In the first few weeks of Trump’s presidency, Musk has led an effort to dismantle federal agencies, buy out hundreds of thousands of federal workers from their jobs and take over payment systems within the Treasury Department and other agencies. This has sparked several lawsuits and pushback from Democratic lawmakers, state office holders and unions representing federal works.
Unlike traditional government figures, Musk rarely holds news conferences or speaks to reporters, and instead opts to use his social media site, X to do so. What does 'Muskification' bode for the US government?
On this episode of Morning Shot, Bryan DeAngelis, Partner & Head of Washington Office, Penta Group shares his insights.
Presented by: Emaad Akhtar
Produced by: Yeo Kai Ting (ykaiting@sph.com.sg)
Photo credits: Andrew Harnik / Getty Images
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Breakfast with Ryan Huang, Emaad Akhtar and Audrey Siek