Here is the plain text result:
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, is likely to be given office space in the West Wing, putting him close to President Trump as Mr. Musk steers a project that aims to cut as much as $2 trillion in government spending, two people with knowledge of the planning said on Monday.
Mr. Musk had been expected to be situated in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which is in the White House complex but not in the West Wing proper. But he has for many days been asking about his level of access, signaling a desire for proximity to Mr. Trump, according to the people.
Mr. Trump had wanted Mr. Musk to have the space, one of the people said. Mr. Musk has been given a badge for the White House complex and was said to be working there on Monday. He has filled out paperwork to be brought onboard for the role and already has a government email address.
Trump officials and an official with the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, the cost-cutting project that Mr. Musk leads, did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr. Musk spent time on Sunday at the Washington headquarters of his rocket company, SpaceX, before speaking at Mr. Trump’s inauguration on Monday. His government-cutting team has largely spent the past two months at the company’s downtown offices, joined by a number of engineers who hail from Silicon Valley and are planning to be dispersed across the federal government, with a goal of placing about two people at each major agency.
Many aspects related to Mr. Musk’s efforts have been shrouded in secrecy. It remains unclear whether he is going to become a “special government employee” for his project to recommend dramatic cuts to federal programs. The Department of Government Efficiency is not an official department.
His allies have been considering his options over the last several weeks, with an eye on making sure that he is minimally restricted by ethics laws. The question of Mr. Musk’s formal status carries legal ramifications because different rules apply when government work is performed by private citizens or by officials.
Mr. Musk has already played a major role in placing personnel throughout the federal government, including in areas that overlap with his businesses. His allies have been interviewing candidates for senior jobs at agencies including the Pentagon and State Department. And Mr. Musk has weighed in personally on key roles. He successfully pushed for Troy Meink to be chosen as secretary of the Air Force, according to three people with direct knowledge of the situation.
A priority for Mr. Musk has been avoiding triggering a law that requires advisory committees that include private citizens to conduct their work in public view. Becoming a special government employee could be a step toward doing that.
SpaceX has contracts with the government to send astronauts and satellites into space. Mr. Musk’s Tesla electric car company is affected by government policies like subsidies to encourage more production of batteries and chargers inside the United States and to make it easier for consumers to buy such vehicles.
Under the ethics law’s terms, however, Mr. Trump could exempt Mr. Musk from that limit by granting him a written waiver.
Source link
