WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has reportedly informed his cabinet and inner circle that Elon Musk will be stepping back from his high-profile government role in the coming weeks.
The Tesla and SpaceX boss will soon be returning to the business world, foreign media and Politico reported.
Revelations about the shock move rattled the stock market and stunned Washington. Musk’s designation as a special government employee meant he was scheduled to step down in May, but he is now leaving early in a cloud of controversy. It represents an apparent sea change in Trump’s relationship with Musk from last month when White House sources were suggesting that the Tesla boss was ‘here to stay.’
Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt immediately poured cold water on claims of a rift, declaring that Politico’s ‘scoop is garbage.’
Leavitt added: ‘Elon Musk and President Trump have both publicly stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete.’
Within the White House, Musk has become a controversial figure due to his slash and burn style of cutting down the federal government. He also just sank $20 million into Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race only to have his Republican candidate lose.
And stock in Tesla has dropped sharply with sales down and its car lots being set on fire. But the report Musk is going back to his business roots sent the company’s shares rocketing again.
Trump empowered him to bring that power and success to the federal government. The decision caused immediate controversy leading to questions as to whether Musk, whose Space X company has billions in government contracts, had a conflict of interest.
Additionally, Musk’s work to cut the size of the federal government has resulted in mass firings and lawsuits against the Trump administration.
He’s also proven unpredictability. In all, Musk began to be seen as a political liability. The Democratic candidate in Wisconsin won, in part, by shaping the race as ‘The People vs. Elon Musk.’
Publicly Trump has supported Musk, keeping him close and visible. Musk has been with him in the Oval Office, walked the path from the White House to Marine One, and gotten rides on Air Force One. The president even turned the South Lawn of the White House into a Tesla show room after the company stock sank. Trump wrote Musk a personal check for one of the electric cars.
But privately Trump has told his cabinet that they are in charge of each of their departments, not Musk. Musk was in that cabinet meeting when Trump made the announcement. Additionally, Musk’s work to cut the size of the federal government has resulted in mass firings and lawsuits against the Trump administration.
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