Elon Musk in his first appearance answering questions alongside President Donald Trump – and joined by his young son – claimed social security checks were sent to 150-year-old recipients. Standing next to Trump in the Oval Office, Musk asserted that he is being ‘maximally transparent’ in working to eradicate federal corruption. But the tech billionaire did not provide any evidence that government officials have given money to ‘fraudsters’.
Musk said the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Trump appointed him to lead, is using methods that are ‘not draconian, or radical’, but ‘just common sense’ in identifying unqualified disbursements. ‘You know there’s crazy things, just cross re-examination of social security. We’ve got people in there that are 150 years old. Now do you know anyone that’s 150?’ said Musk on Tuesday.
![[Elon Musk speaks as he carries his son, X ?? A-12, on his shoulders next to U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured) in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 11, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/SEI_239524849-7cde.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video. Up Next. ‘I don’t, OK. They should be in the Guinness book of world records. They’re missing out. So you know, that’s the case where I think they’re probably dead. It’s my guess. Or they should be famous, one of the two.’. At times during the bizarre press conference, Musk brought his hands together at the tips of his fingers. His four-year-old son, X Æ A-Xii, looked up at him and then clasped his hands in a similar fashion.
The son of Musk and singer Grimes held his hands clasped while momentarily clenching his teeth and biting his lip, and moving between the Resolute Desk and his dad. Musk also put his son on his shoulders and Trump looked intently at the child. Trump called X Æ A-Xii a ‘high IQ individual’. The US president signed an executive order giving Musk more power to require federal government agencies to cooperate with his DOGE initiativesby cutting staff numbers and limiting replacements.
According to the order, agency heads must make ‘large scale’ work force reductions and new hiring will be overseen by Musk. Positions for the military and ‘national security, homeland security and public safety responsibilities’ are exempt from the order. Trump added that it was ‘fine’ if Congress will need to approve cuts by DOGE and, ‘We’ll get the vote. Musk revealed that he and Trump talk nearly every day about the type of work he should do within the government.
The world’s richest man also joked that the scrutiny he gets is like a ‘daily proctology exam’. While it was the first time Musk answered questions as DOGE head, he has been a frequent presence around Trump including on the 2024 campaign trail and even reportedly rented a cottage at Mar-a-Lago. At Trump’s inauguration parade, Musk slapped his right hand to his heart and then sharply at an angle, drawing comparisons to a Nazi salute that even Grimes denounced.
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