Elon Musk’s New DOGE Post Sparks Political and Crypto Buzz

Highlights:

• Elon Musk hinted in a new DOGE post that he might lead a new government agency if Trump wins in 2024.
• Trump has promised to establish a government efficiency commission to audit and reform federal operations.
• Dogecoin surged nearly 3% to $0.09553 following Musk’s recent engagement.

Tesla founder Elon Musk has once again stirred excitement in the Dogecoin community with a recent tweet indirectly referencing DOGE. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO tweeted, “Department of Government Efficiency,” a phrase that, when abbreviated, forms “DOGE.” This playful reference to Dogecoin was paired with an image of Musk, adding a visual twist that captured his followers’ attention. This isn’t the first time he’s made such a tweet. Last month, a similar post also stirred up the Dogecoin community. 

Department of Government Efficiency pic.twitter.com/HFeHYNIkJN

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2024

Trump Announces Plan for Elon Musk-led Government Efficiency Commission

As Crypto2Community recently reported, former President Donald Trump plans to establish a “Department of Government Efficiency” if re-elected in November. 

Per the Trump, the commission would be “tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government, making recommendations for drastic reforms.” Trump has confirmed that Elon Musk will take charge of the department. The billionaire tech mogul seemed to commit to supporting the political committee but stopped short of confirming he would accept an official government position.

This is badly needed https://t.co/H9AKYbDssZ

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 5, 2024

It’s unclear whether Musk is seriously considering a government position or if the media’s portrayal of the situation is accurate. Trump’s comments suggesting that Musk had “agreed” to the role were based on the idea that “he’s not very busy.”

Per Trump:

“Elon, because he is not very busy, has agreed to head that task force. If he has the time, he’s a good one to do it and he has agreed to do it.”

Peter Leyden, founder of Reinvent Futures and former managing editor at Wired, commented:

“Elon is the latest example of a totally gearheaded, engineering-brained, Silicon Valley guy who looks at government and says, ‘How hard can it be? Let me look at it, and I can solve it for you. There’s been many of these characters before, and he’s just the latest.”

Dogecoin Surges Following Musk’s DOGE Post

Amid this, DOGE’s price rose nearly 2.75% to $0.09553, while its trading volume dropped 49% to $408.11 million. At the same time, DOGE Options Open Interest surged 96% to $138.36K, according to CoinGlass data. Meanwhile, a recent analysis of Dogecoin’s price indicated that the meme coin could potentially rally to $0.15 in a strong bull run.

Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Musk Over Alleged Dogecoin Manipulation

Elon Musk and Tesla successfully dismissed a federal lawsuit accusing them of defrauding investors by manipulating Dogecoin. The ruling was made on August 29 by US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in New York.

The lawsuit, filed in June 2023, accused Musk and Tesla of using social media and publicity to inflate Dogecoin’s price by over 36,000%. The plaintiffs claimed Musk sold the cryptocurrency at its peak and let its value drop, causing investor losses. They sought $258 billion in damages, alleging that Musk’s actions constituted insider trading and market manipulation.

In a decision on August 29, Judge Hellerstein ruled that Musk’s statements about Dogecoin were “aspirational and puffery, not factual,” and could not be proven false. The judge determined that the evidence did not support the plaintiffs’ claims.