Elon Musk Exits US Government Role After Split with Trump on Tax Bill

On Wednesday night, the White House confirmed that Elon Musk’s exit from the Trump administration was imminent, following his social media announcement.

“I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending as my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end,” the billionaire posted on his social media site, X.

Referring to his “department of government efficiency,” he stated that “the DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”

Musk is departing the administration, and his “off-boarding will begin tonight,” a White House official confirmed to Reuters.

The man who once referred to himself as Trump’s “first buddy” left with little fanfare. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, Musk announced his departure from the government “at a senior staff level” and did not have a formal discussion with Trump before making the announcement.

The richest person in the world, Musk, has justified his position as an unelected official who was given extraordinary power by Trump to dissolve portions of the US government. Around May 30, his 130-day term as a special federal employee under the Trump administration was about to end.

DOGE’s efforts to reorganize and reduce the size of the federal government will continue, according to statements made by both Musk and the administration.

Throughout the week, Musk has been making indications that he is leaving Washington and that he will return to his business endeavors. He voiced his displeasure with the response to the work of his own “department of government efficiency” and harshly criticized Trump’s budget plan.

He criticized the president’s marquee tax bill, saying it was too costly and would jeopardize his efforts to increase government “efficiency.”

“The federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realised,” Musk told the Washington Post on Tuesday. “I thought there were problems, but it sure is an uphill battle trying to improve things in DC, to say the least.”

Additionally, he told the Post that Doge had been reduced to a “whipping boy” who was blamed for all the mishaps in the Trump White House.

In addition to publicly denouncing White House trade adviser Peter Navarro as a “moron” for rejecting Musk’s call for “zero tariffs” between the US and Europe, Musk had a falling out with several cabinet-level officials in private.

According to the New York Times, Musk recently complained to White House officials about an agreement between Abu Dhabi and OpenAI, the rival AI company run by Sam Altman. According to the Wall Street Journal, Musk has previously attempted to sabotage the agreement unless his business was involved.

Despite Musk spending $25 million on the election, the failure of his Wisconsin judicial candidate also contributed to the billionaire’s recent “disillusionment” with politics, according to the New York Times.

According to a Reuters analysis of agency departures, Trump and DOGE have successfully reduced 260,000, or roughly 12%, of the 2.3 million federal civilian employees, primarily through buyouts, early retirement offers, and threats of termination.

Some investors have demanded that Musk resign from his position as Trump’s adviser and take a closer look at Tesla in response to criticism over his political activity.

He announced earlier this month that he would significantly reduce his political expenditures after spending close to $300 million last year to support Trump’s presidential campaign and other Republicans. At a Qatari economic symposium, Musk stated, “I believe I’ve done enough.”

According to the New York Times, Musk promised Trump’s aides this year that he would donate $100 million to organizations under the president’s team’s control prior to the 2026 midterm elections, but as of this week, the funds had not yet been received.