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Elon Musk had hoped to hire a non-U.S. citizen to work at his Department of Government Efficiency — but Trump’s advisers wouldn’t let him, according to a report.
In just a matter of weeks, Musk, as the head of the non-governmental agency DOGE, has already taken steps to disrupt the federal government, making moves to shutter the U.S. Agency for International Development, accessing the Treasury Department’s payment systems, and vowing to use his agency as a “wood chipper for bureaucracy.”
But he may have taken a step too far when he asked to hire Baris Akis, a Turkish-born venture capitalist with a green card who had become a close ally.
The request was met with “an unequivocal no,” sources told The Atlantic.
Trump has promised mass deportations, promoted an “America First” agenda, and made moves to shrink the federal workforce, so hiring Akis could “send a confusing message,” one source told the outlet. Generally speaking, non-citizens are prohibited from working in the U.S. federal government.
Earlier this week, one Trump official told the New York Times that the tech billionaire appeared to be “operating with a level of autonomy that almost no one can control.” And while Musk “accepted the rejection,” according to The Atlantic, it serves as a reminder of the one person who does exert some control over him: President Donald Trump.
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This isn’t the first time Trump has reminded Musk, a “special government employee,” of their power dynamic.
“Sometimes we won’t agree with it, and we’ll not go where he wants to go. But I think he’s doing a great job,” Trump told reporters Sunday, referring to cost-cutting efforts.
The next day, the president underscored that Musk doesn’t have total autonomy.
“Elon can’t do and won’t do anything without our approval. And we will give him the approval where appropriate, and where not appropriate we won’t,” Trump said at the White House. “Where we think there is a conflict or there’s a problem, we won’t let him go near it.”
Trump’s pointed comments on Musk are an “important” tactic to remind people that there is “one president,” a Trump confidant told The Atlantic.
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The Tesla CEO is no stranger to the spotlight — and perhaps was taking up too much of it for Trump’s liking.
At one point, Musk was consuming so much of the media firestorm that some dubbed him “President Musk.” In a speech, Trump felt the need to clarify: “No, he’s not taking the presidency…That’s not happening.”
Before inauguration, his constant presence — both online and in-person, staying in a cottage hundreds of feet from Mar-a-Lago — seemed to also be testing Trump’s nerves.
“100 percent Trump is annoyed,” a source who worked on Trump’s re-election campaign told Mediaite in December. “There’s a Chinese saying: ‘two tigers cannot live on one mountaintop.’”
Despite any disagreements, Musk continues to make sweeping moves within DOGE. His other, successful hiring decisions have also come to light. The SpaceX founder also recruited half a dozen young engineers— aged 19 to 24 — who possess virtually no government experience to work at DOGE, according to Wired.
