Trump Names Elon Musk to Lead “Department of Government Efficiency” — DOGE for Short, Prompting…

Trump Names Elon Musk to Lead “Department of Government Efficiency” — DOGE for Short, Prompting Meme Mania

President-elect Donald Trump announced this Tuesday that his major donor and the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, will co-lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a playful nod to the Dogecoin meme and the Shiba Inu that inspired it. Though DOGE isn’t a formal department — Congress approval is required for that — it’s a move that humorously elevates Musk’s ongoing affinity for the Doge meme into an actual advisory role in the Trump administration.

Musk’s Meme Power: From Doge to the White House

Musk has long been a champion of Dogecoin, the meme-based cryptocurrency that initially started as a joke. His social media antics and frequent mentions of Dogecoin have led to huge price fluctuations, solidifying him as a key player in its popularity. From the “DOGE-1 Mission to the Moon” to temporarily changing the logo of X (formerly Twitter) to the Doge icon, Musk has had a powerful influence on Dogecoin’s journey from internet joke to a valuable cryptocurrency.

In a single day, Dogecoin spiked by almost 20% following Trump’s announcement of the new DOGE office, which will be an advisory body tasked with consulting on cost-effective government policies. This surge aligns with Musk’s meme-inspired efforts over the years, which began with the Shiba Inu meme in 2013 and have kept Dogecoin in the spotlight.

The Origins of the Doge Meme

The original Doge meme — a lovable Shiba Inu named Kabosu with comic-style captions in broken English — first captivated the internet in 2013. Kabosu became an online sensation, inspiring the cryptocurrency Dogecoin later that year. While the joke has persisted, Musk’s influence and advocacy brought new energy to Dogecoin, boosting it beyond its meme origins and elevating it into a cultural phenomenon and financial asset.

Doge and the Political Meme Machine

Trump’s embrace of DOGE is reminiscent of past internet memes like Pepe the Frog, which also evolved into a political symbol during Trump’s first term. Originally an innocent comic character, Pepe gained a second life as a meme and eventually became a symbol in alt-right movements and the 2016 Trump campaign. Doge, like Pepe, risks taking on unintended connotations now that it’s linked with a high-profile political figure.

A Meme for the Moment — or for the Movement?

DOGE’s role is likely to be another playful chapter in the Trump-Musk narrative. Yet, just as Pepe the Frog morphed from harmless humor to a complex symbol, Doge too may find itself caught between its lighthearted meme roots and the weightier implications of political association. But as with Pepe’s resurgence in pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, memes are flexible, often reinterpreted based on the moment. And with Elon Musk at the helm, Kabosu’s legacy in Dogecoin is poised to keep evolving — whether as a quirky White House meme, a major crypto asset, or something entirely new.

Trump Names Elon Musk to Lead “Department of Government Efficiency” — DOGE for Short, Prompting… was originally published in The Capital on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.