Trump: "Musk Gains Nothing... Will Uncover Billions of Dollars Fraud in the Department of Defense"

Fox News Interview
"Canada Should Become the 51st State," Trump Repeats

U.S. President Donald Trump expressed trust in Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), who has been criticized for wielding immense power in the second term administration. He also reaffirmed the need for federal government restructuring and stated that Canada should become the 51st state of the United States.

On the 9th (local time), before attending the Super Bowl game, President Trump said in an interview with Fox News about CEO Musk, "He has nothing to gain," and "He is really focused (on the work)."

Despite some criticisms that Musk, known as Trump's closest aide and called the 'First Buddy (No. 1 Friend),' is acting like the president himself, Trump showed full trust in him. Earlier, the American news weekly Time featured a composite photo on the cover of its upcoming issue on the 24th, showing CEO Musk sitting at the Oval Office desk of the White House.

President Trump claimed that CEO Musk would uncover billions of dollars in fraud and abuse in the Department of Defense and the Department of Education.

He said, "I will probably tell him to check the Department of Education within 24 hours," adding, "Then we'll go to the military. Let's check the military." He continued, "We will find billions of dollars in fraud and abuse."

President Trump, who is pushing for federal government downsizing, ordered CEO Musk to review expenditures across all departments, including the Department of Defense and the Department of Education. CEO Musk is leading the related work as head of the Department of Government Efficiency. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), which handles U.S. foreign aid, also plans to dismantle itself, leaving only 294 employees out of about 10,000.

Regarding this, President Trump said, "Look at USAID," adding, "Hundreds of millions of dollars are flowing into places they shouldn't. It's crazy and a huge fraud."

He also repeated his remarks that he hopes Canada becomes the 51st state of the United States.

President Trump said, "Why should we pay Canada $200 billion a year in subsidies?" and added, "I think it wouldn't be bad if they became the 51st state."