Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America Correspondent

image source, Reuters

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has been a full-time presence at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago transition headquarters. According to media reports, he advises the president-elect on cabinet nominees and even joined a conversation between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last week.

Late Tuesday, Trump announced he was appointing Musk to work with tech entrepreneur and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy in a “government efficiency department” tasked with identifying new budget cuts.

Musk’s political action committee has spent about $200 million to help Trump’s presidential campaign, and he promises to continue funding the group’s efforts to advance the president-elect’s agenda and help Republican candidates in upcoming congressional elections .

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen where Robert F Kennedy Jr, another key character, lands. Trump said he plans to give the former Democrat and vaccine skeptic, who abandoned his independent candidacy and endorsed the Republican, a role in making America “healthy” again.

“He wants to do some things, and we’re going to let him do it,” Trump said in his election victory speech.