Elon Musk steps down from government efficiency role, criticizes Trump’s spending bill

Billionaire Elon Musk announced Wednesday that he is stepping down from his role as a Special Government Employee, ending his tenure leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a Trump-era initiative aimed at reducing federal spending.

His departure comes amid growing disagreement with President Donald Trump over a major new spending bill.

“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President Donald Trump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” Musk said on his social media platform X. He added that the DOGE mission would “only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”

Musk, who had previously been a prominent supporter of Trump and a close adviser, criticized the president’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act,” a sweeping legislative package that includes tax cuts and spending adjustments. Musk warned that the bill would increase the federal deficit and undermine DOGE’s efforts, which have already led to the dismissal of tens of thousands of federal employees.

“I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it,” Musk told CBS News in an interview excerpt aired Tuesday night. “It undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing.”

The bill, which passed the House last week and is now under Senate consideration, has faced criticism from analysts who claim it could inflate the national deficit by up to $4 trillion over ten years and severely impact healthcare services. “A bill can be big, or it can be beautiful. But I don’t know if it can be both,” Musk said.

The White House has attempted to downplay the apparent rift, with Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller clarifying that the spending bill is not an annual budget measure and that DOGE-related cuts would need separate legislative action.

Musk’s resignation signals a rare public disagreement with Trump, whom he supported heavily during the 2024 election campaign, reportedly contributing around $250 million.

In interviews with the Washington Post and CBS, Musk voiced frustration over DOGE becoming a “whipping boy” for broader dissatisfaction with the administration. “Something bad would happen anywhere, and we would get blamed for it even if we had nothing to do with it,” he said, speaking from SpaceX’s Starbase launch site in Texas.

Musk cited bureaucratic resistance as a major obstacle to reform, saying, “The federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realized.” Although DOGE succeeded in slashing jobs and closing several departments, Musk acknowledged that many of his goals went unmet.

His government role also had a negative impact on his companies. Tesla faced protests and arson attacks on vehicles, and profits declined. “People were burning Teslas. Why would you do that? That’s really uncool,” Musk commented.

He has since turned his attention back to SpaceX, despite recent setbacks such as the Starship prototype’s explosion over the Indian Ocean. Musk has also indicated that he will reduce his political spending going forward.

With his exit from DOGE, Musk closes a controversial and turbulent chapter in his brief political career.