The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) does not have the statutory authority to fire people, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday. Leavitt told CNN that DOGE has only an advisory role and "it's ultimately up to the discretion of these secretaries to make these hirings and firings.

Musk doesn't have any "actual or formal authority" and isn't technically DOGE's leader, a White House court filing says.