Elon Musk's right-hand man while he served in the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reportedly tried to lead the agency even after he had departed.
Steve Davis, the operational head of DOGE, joined Musk in leaving the government task force on May 29, shortly before Musk ignited his public feud with his former ally President Donald Trump. However, Davis reportedly stayed in contact with DOGE employees, even leading a meeting in early June, Politico reported.
"He was at the GSA running the meeting like it was business as usual," one source told the outlet.
The White House Presidential Office of Personnel reportedly ended up having to contact DOGE employees to tell them to cut contact with Davis.
"A lot of people got uncomfortable," one source said following the message from the White House. "So many people received that message from the White House and I think that bothered them, that Steve was continuing to tell everybody that everything is normal and to act like he is still involved in running the show."
Following the announcement, GSA Acting Administrator Stephen Ehikian, Josh Gruenbaum and Anthony Armstrong took charge of DOGE at the direction of Davis. But when it came time to defend their new authority, one source said that the trio claimed to have been appointed by Vice President JD Vance and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
This account was denied by a senior Trump administration official. And Harrison Fields, a spokesperson for the White House, added to the outlet that "every agency and department is executing this mission seamlessly."
Musk was named by the White House to serve as a special government employee with DOGE earlier this year with the goal of helping to cut wasteful spending and abuse. DOGE's work was met with fierce backlash by voters across the country after thousands of federal workers were laid off.
The Tesla CEO departed from the Trump administration at the end of May, with the White House citing that his temporary status was coming to an end. However, days after leaving his post, Musk turned to social media to bash the GOP's "big, beautiful bill" over the estimated trillions of dollars it would add to the national deficit, leading to a sparring match online with Trump.
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