Elon Musk’s role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE, is on the surface a dramatic effort to overhaul the inefficiencies of federal bureaucracy. But beneath the rhetoric of cost-cutting and regulatory streamlining lies a troubling scenario.

A State Department spokesperson told Forbes the department has “no current plans” to move forward with the potential contract, which was initiated under the Biden administration.

The US is preparing to buy $400m (£321m) of “armoured Teslas” even as Elon Musk seeks to cut government spending by billions of dollars.