Donald Trump calls Elon 'smart', 'big cost-cutter'; Musk says, 'I love him more'

As Elon Musk becomes more powerful in the administration getting access to the federal payments system and now shutting USAID, President Donald Trump said Elon is doing a great job. "I think Elon is doing a good job. He's a big cost-cutter. Sometimes we won't agree with it. It will not go where he wants to go. But he is doing a great job. He’s a smart guy… he's very much into cutting the budget of our federal government," Trump said.

Elon Musk shared the clip on X and thanked the president for the praises.


Coincidentally, Elon Musk also made some public comments about Donald Trump in the first-ever X Space on DOGE & Mars, which he hosted at midnight yesterday. The more I’ve gotten to know President Trump, the more I like him. I love the guy; he’s great," Elon Musk said.

At this live session on X Spaces, Musk announced that he spoke in detail with the president about USAID. "He agreed we should shut it down," Musk said. “It became apparent that it’s not an apple with a worm it in,” Musk said. “What we have is just a ball of worms. You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing. It’s beyond repair.” “We’re shutting it down.”

Two top security chiefs at USAID were placed on leave after they refused to turn over classified material in restricted areas to Musk's team, DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency). Musk's aides, however, gained access to that information on Saturday. “USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die," Musk posted in a precursor to his announcement.

Trump said USAID has been run by a bunch of radical lunatics endorsing Elon Musk's decision to shut it down. The United States Agency for International Development is a body that extends assistance to countries recovering from disasters.