WASHINGTON: Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla and owner of social media platform X, has stepped down from his advisory role in the Trump administration without prior notice.
The U.S. Office of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk headed as a special government employee, confirmed his sudden departure.
According to White House officials, Musk had originally agreed to serve as a special government employee for a term of 130 days, set to end on May 30. However, disheartened by the Trump administration’s actions, Musk resigned two days early, marking the first major departure from Trump’s advisory team.
Just a day before his resignation, Musk had publicly criticized President Trump’s new legislative bill, sarcastically commenting that a bill can either be “big” or “beautiful” but doubted it could be both. He expressed dissatisfaction with several aspects of the legislation, particularly its excessive spending provisions.
In a statement on X (formerly Twitter), Musk wrote: “My time as a special government employee is over. I’m grateful to President Trump for the opportunity to help cut wasteful expenditures. The mission to improve government efficiency will only grow stronger with time.”
The Trump administration is currently pursuing legislation aimed at tax cuts and stricter immigration policies. Musk, however, argued that the bill involves unsustainable spending, which would worsen the federal deficit and undermine the cost-saving goals of DOGE.
Media reports indicate that President Trump and DOGE have already reduced the federal workforce by 260,000 employees: approximately 12% of the total 2.3 million.
Musk’s foray into political administration drew criticism from some investors, who urged him to focus on Tesla. While Musk had consistently defended his actions as an unelected public official at DOGE, he also acknowledged the need to reduce his political commitments.
After taking charge of the government efficiency department, Musk had candidly admitted that the state of federal bureaucracy was far worse than he had anticipated.
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