Former president suggests Musk would be ’very good’ as head of a government efficiency commission.
Former President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, CEO of the social platform X, held a wide ranging conversation on Aug. 12 on topics including the economy and energy prices, with Trump suggesting tapping Musk as the head of a government efficiency commission at one point.
After more than 30 minutes of delays caused by what Musk said was a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack on the platform, the two turned to the topic of inflation and government spending. The CEO suggested forming a commission to ensure the “country lives within its means,” adding that he believes federal overspending is the root cause of inflation.
“Would you agree that we need to take a look at government spending and have, perhaps, like a government efficiency commission?” Musk asked Trump.
Trump said Musk “would be very good” as the head of such commission and would love the position. Musk replied that he’d be “happy to help out” if the proposal moved forward.
The former president emphasized the impact of prices on everyday Americans when they visit the grocery store.
“We’ve got to get the prices down,” Trump said.
Musk said he believes inflation is a form of taxation, and that, “If we can fix government spending, we can improve people’s lives.”
Trump agreed that government overspending needs to be tackled, suggesting that the “Waste is incredible.”
Highly Anticipated Interview
The wide-ranging conversation was broadcast in audio format in a Space on X, but it was delayed by more than 30 minutes due to what Musk said was a DDoS attack—a cyber attack that floods a system with requests for data, overwhelming the site and limiting access. As the interview kicked off, more than one million users were listening.
The incident was similar to the launch of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s presidential bid in May 2023, also hosted on Spaces. The audio stream repeatedly crashed, making it difficult for users to hear the candidate in real time.
By Jacob Burg, Lawrence Wilson and Janice Hisle