Elon Musk is leaving the Trump administration after leading effort to
slash federal government
[May 29, 2025]
By CHRIS MEGERIAN
WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top
adviser to President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce
and overhaul the federal bureaucracy.
His departure, announced Wednesday evening, marks the end of a turbulent
chapter that included thousands of layoffs, the evisceration of
government agencies and reams of litigation. Despite the upheaval, the
billionaire entrepreneur struggled in the unfamiliar environment of
Washington, and he accomplished far less than he hoped.
He dramatically reduced his target for cutting spending — from $2
trillion to $1 trillion to $150 billion — and increasingly expressed
frustration about resistance to his goals. Sometimes he clashed with
other top members of Trump's administration, who chafed at the
newcomer's efforts to reshape their departments, and he faced fierce
political blowback for his efforts.
Musk's role working for Trump was always intended to be temporary, and
he had recently signaled that he would be shifting his attention back to
running his businesses, such as the electric automaker Tesla and the
rocket company SpaceX.
But administration officials were often vague about when Musk would step
back from his position spearheading the Department of Government
Efficiency, known as DOGE, and he abruptly revealed that he was leaving
in a post on X, his social media website.
“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end,
I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to
reduce wasteful spending,” he wrote. “The @DOGE mission will only
strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the
government.”
A White House official, who requested anonymity to talk about the
change, confirmed Musk's departure.
Musk announced his decision one day after CBS released part of an
interview in which he criticized the centerpiece of Trump’s legislative
agenda by saying he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his
“big beautiful bill.”
The legislation includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration
enforcement. Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that
increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his
Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk said. “But I
don’t know if it could be both.”
Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, defended his agenda by
talking about the delicate politics involved with negotiating the
legislation.
“I’m not happy about certain aspects of it, but I’m thrilled by other
aspects of it,” he said.
Trump also suggested that more changes could be made.
“We’re going to see what happens,” he said. “It’s got a way to go.”
Republicans recently pushed the measure through the House and are
debating it in the Senate.
Musk's concerns are shared by some Republican lawmakers. “I sympathize
with Elon being discouraged,” said Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson.
Speaking at a Milwaukee Press Club event on Wednesday, Johnson added
that he was “pretty confident” there was enough opposition “to slow this
process down until the president, our leadership, gets serious” about
reducing spending. He said there was no amount of pressure Trump could
put on him to change his position.
Speaker Mike Johnson has asked senators to make as few changes to the
legislation as possible, saying that House Republicans reached a “very
delicate balance” that could be upended with major changes. The narrowly
divided House will have to vote again on final passage once the Senate
alters the bill.
On Wednesday, Johnson thanked Musk for his work and promised to pursue
more spending cuts in the future, saying “the House is eager and ready
to act on DOGE’s findings.”
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Elon Musk flashes his T-shirt that reads "DOGE" to the media as he
walks on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington, March 9,
2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
The White House is sending some proposed rescissions, a mechanism used
to cancel previously authorized spending, to Capitol Hill to solidify
some of DOGE’s cuts. A spokesperson for the Office of Management and
Budget said the package will include $1.1 billion from the Corporation
of Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, and $8.3 billion in
foreign assistance.
Musk occasionally seemed chastened by his experience working in
government.
“The federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realized,” he
told The Washington Post. “I thought there were problems, but it sure is
an uphill battle trying to improve things in D.C., to say the least.”
He also recently said that he'll reduce his political spending, because
“I think I’ve done enough.”
Musk had previously been energized by the opportunity to reshape
Washington. After putting at least $250 million behind Trump's
candidacy, he wore campaign hats in the White House, held his own
campaign rallies, and talked about excessive spending as an existential
crisis. He often tended to be effusive in his praise of Trump.
“The more I’ve gotten to know President Trump, the more I like the guy,”
Musk said in February. “Frankly, I love him.”
Trump repaid the favor, describing Musk as “a truly great American.”
When Tesla faced declining sales, he turned the White House driveway
into a makeshift showroom to illustrate his support.
It's unclear what, if any, impact that Musk's comments about the bill
would have on the legislative debate, especially given his departure
from the administration. During the transition period, when his
influence was on the rise, he helped whip up opposition to a spending
measure as the country stood on the brink of a federal government
shutdown.
His latest criticism could embolden Republicans who want bigger spending
cuts. Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee reposted a Fox News story about
Musk's interview while also adding his own take on the measure, saying
there was “still time to fix it.”
“The Senate version will be more aggressive,” Lee said. “It can, it
must, and it will be. Or it won’t pass.”
Only two Republicans — Reps. Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie
of Kentucky — voted against the bill when the House took up the measure
last week.
Davidson took note of Musk’s comments on social media.
“Hopefully, the Senate will succeed with the Big Beautiful Bill where
the House missed the moment,” he wrote. “Don’t hope someone else will
cut deficits someday, know it has been done this Congress.”
The Congressional Budget Office, in a preliminary estimate, said the tax
provisions would increase federal deficits by $3.8 trillion over the
decade, while the changes to Medicaid, food stamps and other services
would reduce spending by slightly more than $1 trillion over the same
period.
House Republican leaders say increased economic growth would allow the
bill to be deficit-neutral or deficit-reducing, but outside watchdogs
are skeptical. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates
the bill would add $3 trillion to the debt, including interest, over the
next decade.
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Associated Press writers Scott Bauer in Milwaukee, and Kevin Freking,
Lisa Mascaro and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
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