Washington, 13 November 2024 (dpa/MIA) - President-elect Donald Trump announced on Tuesday a slew of appointments to his upcoming administration, including naming tech billionaire and mega-donor Elon Musk to lead a new Department of Government Efficiency.

Musk, 53, will be joined there by former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. The new department will advise Trump on how to reduce government spending, but will not be a part of the federal government itself. Their work is expected to be completed by July 2026.

Trump also named Fox News host and army veteran Pete Hegseth to head the Department of Defense and said former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee would be the new US ambassador to Israel.

Trump, in a statement, said he plans to appoint former Republican congressman John Ratcliffe as CIA Director. Ratcliffe is currently the co-chairman of a conservative think tank close to Trump. Democrats accused him providing inaccurate assessments on Russian election interference that contradicted experienced intelligence officers.

Kristi Noem, who is probably best known for admitting to having shot and killed her 14-month-old dog Cricket because she said she could not be trained as a hunting dog, will be the new secretary for Homeland Security. She later said shooting the dog showed she is not afraid of tough decisions.

Trump, in a statement on his Truth Social platform, said Musk and Ramaswamy "will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies."

Numerous reports from US media indicate that many federal employees are fearful for their jobs, as they worry that Trump will fire them and replace them with party loyalists.

Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of X, donated some $120 million to Trump's campaign. He would face some conflicts of interest, as Tesla sales are dependent on government subsidies and government contracts are a multi-billion dollar business for SpaceX.

Also Tesla is under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration due to accidents involving its autopilot driver-assistance system. Musk also constantly complains that there are too many regulatory requirements for both Tesla and SpaceX.

The South African-born entrepreneur also leads the brain chip developer Neuralink and the tunnelling company Boring Company.

TV presenter as Pentagon chief

With wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East, the new US defense secretary will move to the top job at the Pentagon from his current position as host of "Fox & Friends Weekend" on the right-leaning Fox News channel.

Trump said he chose Hegseth because of his long service in the military. He described the incoming Pentagon chief as "tough, smart" and said he was a true proponent of "America First."

Noem to head Homeland Security Department

Noem, the governor of North Dakota, has been a keen Trump supporter. Trump said she would be very good for border security, noting Noem was the first governor to send its state's National Guard troops to Texas to help what Trump called the "Biden border crisis."

Noem will work closely with Tom Homan, who Trump named as his "border czar" and Stephen Miller, a right-wing member of Trump's advising team on immigration in Trump's first term who US media says will re-join the administration. Miller is largely seen as the architect of Trump's family separation policy at the US-Mexico border. Trump has declared mass deportations of illegal immigrants a priority for his administration.