Billionaire Elon Musk is expected to exit the Trump administration in the coming months, according to a report from Politico. In a tweet, however, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called Politico’s report “garbage” before Musk chimed in to dismiss the report as “fake news.”
Trump apparently told his inner circle, per Politico, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (or DOGE) — which was announced before Trump’s first day in office — will likely end following Musk’s departure.
“A lot of the people working with DOGE are the secretaries, the heads of the various agencies, and they’ve learned a lot, and they’re dealing with the DOGE people,” Trump told a group of reports at the Oval Office on Monday, according to Newsweek. “I think some of them may try to keep the DOGE people with them, but you know at a certain point, I think it will end.”
From the start, DOGE was never intended to be a permanent fixture since special government employees are limited to a maximum of 130 days in office during a 365-day period. That said, May 30, 2025 is expected to be Musk’s last day with the Trump administration.
Why is Elon Musk reportedly leaving the Trump administration?
Politico’s report comes after major backlash amid Musk’s quest to cut government spending by $1 trillion in 2025 — disrupting the Department of Education, National Institutes of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, National Archives and Records Administration, and dozens more, per Newsweek.
In an interview with Fox News’ Special Report with Bret Baier, Musk insisted that $1 trillion in federal cuts can still happen between now and his final days as part of the Trump administration, as reported by Reuters.
Others are saying that Musk’s close association with Trump is having a negative important Republican candidates. As Blavity reported, conservative candidate Brad Schimel, who had Musk’s full support, including over $21 million in donations involving his own money, lost to Susan Crawford in the Wisconsin Supreme Court election on Tuesday night. In addition, Tesla’s sales are down by 13 percent.
What did Trump say about Elon Musk’s exit?
Amid rumblings of Musk’s fast-approaching exit, he and Trump are presenting a united front.
“I think he’s been amazing,” Trump told reporters on Monday. “I’d keep him as long as I could keep him.”
He added, “I love very smart people, and he’s very smart, and he’s done a good job … I like high-IQ people. At some point, Elon’s going to want to go back to his company.”
