Elon Musk made a dramatic appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), wielding a red chainsaw on stage as a symbolic gesture against government bureaucracy. The chainsaw, gifted to him by Argentina’s President Javier Milei, was engraved with Milei’s slogan, “Viva la libertad, carajo”, which translates to “Long live liberty, damn it.”
Holding up the chainsaw, Musk declared, “This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” referencing his role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an agency focused on cutting wasteful government spending. According to the DOGE website, Musk’s department has already saved $55 billion through fraud detection, contract renegotiations, and budget cuts.
Trump, who appointed Musk to lead DOGE, praised the savings as “incredible,” suggesting that 20% of the recovered funds could go back to taxpayers in the form of a $5,000 “DOGE Dividend,” while another 20% would be used to pay down the national debt. The U.S. currently faces $36.22 trillion in federal debt.
During his speech, Musk also criticized immigration policies under Joe Biden’s administration, specifically targeting an app that allowed nearly one million people to enter the U.S. on two-year work permits. He claimed Democrats used it as an “investment” to gain votes in swing states, calling it a “real scam at scale to tilt the scales of democracy in America.” His remarks were met with loud applause from the CPAC audience.
