Tesla CEO Elon Musk is stepping down from his government role in the Trump administration, ending a tumultuous tenure marked by high-profile reforms, internal clashes, and an ambitious—though largely unrealized—plan to slash federal spending.
Musk’s exit, confirmed by a White House official late Wednesday, follows rising tensions within the administration and mounting criticism of the president’s tax agenda. The billionaire announced his departure on his social media platform X, thanking President Trump for the opportunity to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
His role as a special government employee allowed Musk to work up to 130 days a year in an official capacity. While initially welcomed as an outsider who could bring private-sector discipline to Washington, Musk’s influence had waned in recent months.
Sources say Musk left without a direct conversation with Trump, and that the decision was made at senior staff level. His departure came just a day after he publicly criticized Trump’s signature tax legislation, calling it fiscally irresponsible—a move that reportedly angered key White House officials, including Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.
Musk’s tenure was anything but conventional. At February’s Conservative Political Action Conference, he dramatically wielded a red metallic chainsaw on stage, calling it a metaphor for cutting bureaucracy. Early in the administration, he claimed DOGE would deliver $2 trillion in savings through aggressive cost-cutting across agencies. The department has so far reported $175 billion in savings, though that figure has not been independently verified.
Despite his showmanship and initial political capital, Musk’s public spats with lawmakers and growing friction with fiscal conservatives eroded his standing over time. His departure caps a brief but disruptive chapter in the administration’s efforts to reshape the federal government.
Though Musk maintains close personal ties with Trump, his exit underscores the challenges of executing large-scale structural reforms in a deeply divided Washington. The DOGE initiative, once heralded as a centerpiece of Trump’s drive to “drain the swamp,” now faces an uncertain future without its most vocal champion.
