Elon Musk steps down from government role, refocuses on Tesla
Elon Musk is departing from the U.S. administration, where he served as one of the chief advisors to President Donald Trump and led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The 53-year-old Elon Musk announced his decision on Wednesday in a post on his social media platform X. The Associated Press (AP) emphasizes that this marks the end of a turbulent period characterized by thousands of layoffs and a comprehensive restructuring of government agencies. Although Musk embarked on numerous initiatives, their impacts were significantly more modest than anticipated.
Initially, Musk planned to reduce government spending by $2 billion ($2.76 billion CAD), but he ultimately managed to decrease this amount to $150 billion ($207 billion CAD). He faced strong opposition from other members of the Trump administration who resisted his reforms.
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. The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government - Musk stated.
Musk, who is among the wealthiest individuals globally and the owner of several renowned companies, including Tesla and SpaceX, had previously announced a break from politics to focus on managing his businesses.
His departure coincided with public criticism of a key legislative element of the Trump administration, which he described as a "huge budget bill". In an interview with CBS, Musk expressed disappointment with what President Trump called his "big, beautiful bill". He argued that size cannot be reconciled with aesthetics.
Musk frustrated with politics
AP notes that despite initially investing at least $250 million ($346 million CAD) in Trump's campaign and expressing robust support for the president, Musk became increasingly disillusioned over time with the bureaucratic challenges in Washington. He admitted that the confrontation with the federal administration was "much more difficult than I anticipated". He described his attempts at reform as a "tough battle".
The White House sent to Congress a budget cut proposal totalling $9.4 billion, which included reductions in funding for public radio and television, as well as foreign aid. Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson announced further cuts based on DOGE's findings.
According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Trump's legislative package will increase the federal deficit by $3.8 trillion ($ 5.2 trillion CAD) over the next decade. This contradicts the claims of Republicans, who argue that economic growth will offset the fiscal impacts.
