Elon Musk exits Trump administration after controversial stint

Elon Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla, withdrew from his role as a special government employee in the Trump administration after 130 days of activity, stepping back from his involvement with the White House.

A White House official confirmed the news to Reuters, stating that Musk's formal exit process from the administration will begin on Wednesday evening (U.S. time).

In a post on the social media platform X, Musk thanked Trump and announced that his tenure at the so-called "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) has come to an end. He emphasized in the post: "The DOGE mission will grow stronger over time and will become sustainably integrated across the government."

On Tuesday, Musk criticized the Republican tax and budget bill in Congress, stating: "I was truly disappointed to see this massive spending bill, as it not only fails to reduce the budget deficit but increases it, undermining the efforts of the DOGE team."

Musk also told The Washington Post: "The state of federal bureaucracy in the United States is far worse than I thought. I knew there were issues, but I’m certain that improving things in Washington is an exhausting battle."

Musk further noted that he is currently focusing on projects with the highest returns and has little hope for improving the state of federal bureaucracy in the U.S.

Musk's political activities have faced backlash, with some investors calling for him to step down from his advisory role to Trump and focus more on managing Tesla.

According to reports, the Trump administration and this department have, over the past months, succeeded in removing approximately 260,000 civilian federal employees from their positions through threats of termination and offers of early retirement. This action, pursued as part of a policy to reduce government structure, has sparked widespread protests across various U.S. states.