Elon Musk says there's substantial ignorance about America's national debt

"A significant % of people don't even know that there is such a thing as a national debt!" Musk declared in a post on X.

"Those that do often don't know how big it is or that our interest payments now exceed what we spend on our military. Only a small % understand that government overspending causes inflation," he added.

The national debt has soared past $36 trillion.

"America is going bankrupt fast," Musk warned in another post.

"The excess government spending is what causes inflation! ALL government spending is taxation. This is a very important concept to appreciate. It is either direct taxation, like income tax, or indirect via inflation due to increasing the money supply," he asserted in a tweet earlier this month.

In another post, Musk said, "If we don't tackle the national debt, all tax revenue will go to paying interest and there will be nothing left for anything else."

If the issue isn't addressed "the dollar will be worth nothing," Musk warned in a tweet earlier this year.

Trump said in a statement that DOGE "will provide advice and guidance from outside of Government, and will partner with the White House and Office of Management & Budget to drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before."