President Trump defended his first three weeks back in the White House — punctuated by federal government disruption and promises of American expansionism — during an interview with Fox News Channel's Bret Baier that aired on Super Bowl Sunday.
One of Trump's biggest moves in his second term in the White House was asking billionaire Elon Musk to lead an entity, called the Department of Government Efficiency, to focus on cutting federal spending.
"I've had a great help with Elon Musk, who's been terrific," Trump said during the interview, which was pretaped and aired as Trump flew to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl in person, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to do so.
Musk, a tech magnate turned special government employee, has had nearly unrestricted access to federal government departments and information — including Social Security and bank account numbers. A federal judge on Saturday temporarily blocked access to the Treasury Department to DOGE following a lawsuit from 19 Democratic attorneys general, citing the risk of "irreparable harm."
"I disagree with it 100%," Trump said of the ruling. "I think it's crazy. And we have to solve the efficiency problem."
When asked about his confidence in Musk, Trump said his intentions were good.
"Trust Elon?" Trump said. "Oh, he's not gaining anything. In fact, I wonder how he can devote the time to it. He's so into it."
With Trump's support, Musk and his DOGE unit have drastically cut funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development and promised to "shut it down." On Friday, a court temporarily stopped the Trump administration from shutting the agency down completely.
Trump said he's directed Musk and his team to investigate the departments of Education and Defense next.
"We're going to find billions, hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud and abuse," the president said. "And, you know, the people elected me on that."
SpaceX — one of Musk's companies — has received billions of dollars in government contracts from the Department of Defense.
Canada as the "51st state"
During his inauguration speech, Trump promised to "pursue our Manifest Destiny into the stars" and send astronauts to Mars. In the intervening weeks, Trump has also talked about buying Greenland, making Canada the "51st state," taking back the Panama Canal and owning Gaza — all without excluding the possibility of using U.S. troops to achieve these expansionist goals.
Trump doubled down on his wish for Canada to join the U.S. during his interview with Baier.
"I think Canada would be much better off being a 51st state, because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada," Trump said.
Last week, Trump threatened stiff tariffs on Mexico and Canada but delayed them for 30 days after both countries promised to send 10,000 troops to guard their U.S. borders. On Sunday, the president said those actions weren't enough to stop the eventual tariffs.
"No, it's not good enough," Trump said. "It's not sustainable, and I'm changing it."
While flying on Air Force One to New Orleans, Trump told reporters he will issue a 25% tariff on aluminum and steel imports on Monday. Additionally, he plans to announce reciprocal tariffs on "everyone" on Tuesday or Wednesday: "If they charge us, we charge them. That's all," he said. "Every country will be reciprocal."
He also stood by his wish that the U.S. will own and take over Gaza.
Trump on the Super Bowl
Trump's interview with Fox News aired hours before the coin toss at the Superdome in New Orleans, La.
"I thought it would be a good thing for the country to have the president be at the game," Trump said of his decision to attend in person.
When asked who he thinks will win the NFL championship, the president picked the Chiefs because of quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
"I guess you have to say that when a quarterback wins as much as he's won, I have to go with Kansas City," the president said. "I have to go with Kansas City. At the same time, Philadelphia has a fantastic — it's going to be just a great game."
The president played football at the New York Military Academy. Trump later went on to own the New Jersey Generals in the United States Football League. The USFL briefly competed with the NFL before folding.
In 2018, Trump disinvited the Eagles from the White House after they won Super Bowl 52. At the time, the team wouldn't promise that all its players would stand with a hand on their heart for the national anthem.
Trump criticized players who knelt during the national anthem to protest racism — the movement started by Colin Kaepernick in 2016.
The president's Super Bowl attendance comes after the NFL's decision to remove the "End Racism" slogans that had been written in end zones since 2021. "Choose Love" will be stenciled into the end zone on Sunday.
"We have to come together," Trump said on Sunday. "But to come together, there's only one thing that's going to do it, and that's massive success. Success will bring the country together, but it's hard."
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