Elon Musk and his allies have spent the last two weeks barreling full speed into multiple government agencies, causing confusion and chaos and raising questions about whether an unelected businessman can wield this kind of authority,

The group wasn't trying to enter the federal premises in a violent takeover, but rather act as a wall of defense between the government agency and a directive to cease the organization's work as a matter of fiduciary foresight. Later that afternoon, the USAID office shut down. The official USAID website is no longer available.

At a signing ceremony in the Oval Office on Feb. 3, President Trump said that Elon Musk "won't do anything" without his administration's approval.