• Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick used the premiere of “The Axios Show” to deliver a pointed critique of Elon Musk’s approach to government cost-cutting.
• Lutnick argued that Musk focused too heavily on shrinking the federal workforce instead of targeting systemic waste and inefficiency.
• With Musk out of Washington and relations with President Trump fractured, officials feel freer to assess his legacy more critically.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (TDR) — In the premiere episode of “The Axios Show,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick declared that Elon Musk mishandled his role overseeing DOGE by focusing on layoffs rather than government waste. The critique highlights a growing willingness among officials to reassess Musk’s tenure now that he no longer sits inside the Trump administration’s orbit.

Lutnick told Axios co-founder Mike Allen that while DOGE still functions, its approach has shifted decisively. “The cuts will be aimed at costs, not headcount,” he said. By reframing the mission, Lutnick drew a direct contrast with Musk’s “slash-and-burn” strategy that thinned out federal ranks but delivered little in lasting fiscal discipline.

Musk’s Misstep

Lutnick argued Musk’s central mistake was believing that government could be run like a private company, pointing to the Tesla and Twitter executive’s reliance on mass firings as a shortcut to efficiency.

“I thought Elon got caught up in other people’s objectives,” Lutnick said. “The government, I’m sure it could be 10% smaller. I’m sure it could be 15% smaller. And let the cabinet secretaries go in, study their place and make the proper cuts.”

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By importing the Twitter playbook, Lutnick suggested, Musk ignored the structural complexities of government spending. The result, he said, was a backward strategy—eliminating headcount without first tackling entrenched inefficiencies.

From Twitter to Washington

Musk’s confidence came in part from his rapid downsizing of Twitter after acquiring the platform in 2022. To his critics, the problem was assuming that cutting engineers and content moderators in Silicon Valley could be replicated at federal agencies with sprawling mandates and statutory obligations.

“The focus should have been on cutting the waste, fraud and abuse, and the people you could do over time,” Lutnick emphasized. “I thought he got that backward.”

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DOGE, created as Musk’s central cost-cutting initiative, initially made headlines with projections of $1 trillion to $2 trillion in annual savings. But those numbers never materialized. Current estimates put DOGE’s savings at just over $200 billion, with even those figures disputed.

The New DOGE

Despite Musk’s exit, DOGE remains active, though in a diminished form. Lutnick said its renewed focus lies in rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse rather than cutting payrolls.

“DOGE is still pursuing that waste, fraud and abuse and I think it’ll be effective,” he said. “Less effective than I would’ve hoped, but I think it’s still going to be effective.”

With Musk’s departure and his relationship with President Trump now openly strained, officials feel freer to acknowledge shortcomings in his approach. What was once heralded as a revolution in government management is now seen as a case study in overpromising and underdelivering.

The Broader Significance

The remarks underscore a larger debate inside Washington about how to reform the federal government. Advocates of deep structural cuts often clash with those who see targeted efficiency improvements as the only sustainable path forward. Lutnick’s comments suggest the Commerce Department will press ahead with the latter.

Still, the question remains: can DOGE deliver meaningful, long-term savings? With early estimates abandoned and skeptics circling, the future of the program may hinge less on dramatic gestures and more on unglamorous, line-item scrutiny.

The real test will be whether DOGE can show taxpayers a credible return on investment without the spectacle of mass firings.

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