White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is defending President Donald Trump's efforts to make the government "good stewards" of taxpayer dollars as criticism over Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s role in the Department of Government Efficiency pours in from Democrats.

Musk sparked criticism from Democrats after DOGE effectively shut down USAID on Monday. This action is one of many the administration has taken to cut "waste and abuse" out of the federal government, Leavitt said.

"What President Trump and Elon Musk and this entire administration is trying to do is make our bloated bureaucracy here in Washington run like a profitable business, and every agency has been tasked with going line by line and ensuring that the American taxpayer's money is aligned with the American people's interests," Leavitt