President Donald Trump held his first official Cabinet meeting since beginning his second term.
Elon Musk, an adviser to Trump and the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), spoke at the Cabinet meeting. As he first stood up to speak, Musk said he was “tech support” and said DOGE was doing lots of work to “fix the government computer systems.”
The meeting took a turn when a reporter asked Trump if any of his Cabinet members had heard complaints about Musk and what DOGE was seeking to accomplish.
Trump responded by saying, “Hey Elon, let the Cabinet speak for a second. Is anyone unhappy with Elon? If you are, we’ll throw him out of here. Anyone unhappy?”
The room erupted in laughter after the comment from Trump.
Musk also spoke about DOGE and what his team has been tasked to handle by the president.
“A couple tech support here, because this is actually as crazy as accounts that that that is almost a little description of the world of the those team is doing is helping fix the gonna computer systems. Menu systems are extremely old; they don’t communicate their lot of mistakes and systems. Software doesn’t work so we are actually takes whole. It’s it’s it’s ironic, but it’s true,” Musk said.
“The overall goal here with the doors to is to help address the steps that we simply cannot sustain as a coterie two trillion dollar deficit. The interest rates that just the interest on the national debt now exceeds the defense department spending. We spent a lot of us problem, but we’re spending like it over a trillion dollars on interest. If this continues, the country will go to become de facto background, but an optional thing, it is the central thing that that’s best series of here and taking a lot of and getting a lot of death threats like spectrum up. But if we don’t do this, America will go bankrupt. That’s why it has to be done. Competence at this point knock on wood, like of my head,” Musk joked.
“Dollars in savings. That would be a roughly 15 percent of it’s for seven trillion dollar budget and see that can only be done with the support of everyone in this room like to thank the lord for a sport. Thank you very much this. This can only be done with with your sport,” he added.
Musk continued, “To support function for the present for the agencies and departments to help achieve those savings into effect, if actually find, 15 percent reduction in fraud and waste. So like was this we’ll just go to those stuck up with line. I my light on. We specify each item so. Make mistakes, we won’t be perfect, but when we make mistake, we’ll fix it very quickly.”
WATCH:
Room erupts in laughter at Trump’s Cabinet meeting when he jokes about Musk:
“Hey Elon, let the Cabinet speak for a second. Is anyone unhappy with Elon? If you are, we’ll throw him out of here. Anyone unhappy?” pic.twitter.com/KGtTRdbXMb
— Martin Walsh (@martinwalsh__) February 26, 2025
At another moment, Trump confirmed that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will come to the White House on Friday to sign an agreement about natural resources and rebuilding Ukraine after the war.
“We’re doing very well with Russia-Ukraine. President Zelensky is going to be coming on Friday. It’s now confirmed, and we’re going to be signing an agreement,” Trump said, thanking Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
He added, “We’ve been able to make a deal where we’re going to get our money back and we’re going to get a lot of money in the future, and I think that’s appropriate.”
Trump said that his administration is “happy about” the deal, which could let the U.S. get rare earth minerals from Ukraine as part of larger talks to end Russia’s invasion and include the US in a fund to help Ukraine rebuild.
WATCH:
TRUMP: ZELENSKY IS COMING TO THE WHITE HOUSE on Friday.
“We’re going to be signing an agreement [on rare earth minerals].”
Peace is coming soon. pic.twitter.com/EsIvQbdjas
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) February 26, 2025