In an interview with Mark Penn, a political strategist and former adviser to the Clinton administration, Musk acknowledged that the proposed US Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE) would struggle to meet its previously promised $2 trillion in federal spending cuts. This contrasts sharply with Trump's announcement at a campaign rally last October that it would "cut at least $2 trillion." Musk explained that the higher target was set to ensure actual results, "if we try to cut $2 trillion, we can achieve $1 trillion." According to US Treasury data, spending for fiscal year 2024 is $6.75 trillion, while the government's discretionary budget is only $1.70 trillion. Musk said inflation control could be achieved by reducing the budget deficit from $2 trillion to $1 trillion and unleashing the economy's potential to allow output of goods and services to keep pace with money supply growth. Experts expect Musk and Ramaswami to focus cuts on social welfare programs such as Medicaid.