- Elon Musk is expected to step down from his government role in the coming weeks, according to a Politico report. Both he and President Donald Trump agree that it is time for Musk to return to his companies.
- The Department of Government Efficiency could shut down more than a year before initially planned.
- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the Politico report as “garbage.”
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Earlier in the week of March 30, President Donald Trump said that “at some point,” Elon Musk will be leaving his government duties, including his role at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). That point may be in the very near future.
The president told his inner circle, including cabinet members, that Musk will be stepping back in the coming weeks, according to an exclusive report by Politico. The report cited three Trump insiders who spoke anonymously on the relationship between the president and the world’s richest person.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the report as “garbage.”
“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,” Leavitt wrote on X.
This “scoop” is garbage.
— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) April 2, 2025
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. https://t.co/Brppff6SKi
Politico said that while Trump is pleased with Musk and the efforts of DOGE, both men decided that, “in recent days,” it will soon be time for Musk to return to his own companies.
“I think he’s been amazing, but I also think he’s got a big company to run,” Trump told reporters Monday, March 31, in the Oval Office. “And at some point, he’s going to be going back. He wants to.”
What happens to DOGE?
This also means DOGE may shut down more than a year ahead of schedule. Trump has indicated that his agencies have learned what they need from Musk and the cost-cutting body.
DOGE originally intended to shut down by July 4, 2026. Musk previously said DOGE could cut $1 trillion to $2 trillion from the annual federal budget.
As a special government employee, Musk is technically restricted to working 130 days during a 365-day period. Some advisers to the president had expected Trump would find a way around that restriction. However, following the Politico report, a senior government official told NBC News that Musk would leave when his 130 days are up.
“I’d keep him as long as I could keep him,” Trump said. “He’s a very talented guy. You know, I love very smart people. And he’s very smart, and he’s done a good job.”
Tesla has worst delivery quarter in nearly 3 years
The report that Musk’s impending exit may happen in the coming weeks came out the same day Musk’s most profitable company, Tesla, released disappointing delivery numbers. In the first quarter of 2025, Tesla delivered shy of 337,000 vehicles, well below Wall Street’s waning expectations, and a 13% drop from the same quarter in 2024.
While Tesla’s stock started the April 2 trading day down on news of sluggish deliveries, it gained more than 5% by midday on the report Musk may soon leave government.
Notable Tesla investor Ross Gerber of Gerber Kawasaki remained skeptical about the impact on the company.
“Like this will help somehow,” Gerber posted on X, another Musk property. “Elon is going to run [xAI]. That’s his passion, Tesla needs a real CEO.”
During the week of March 23, Musk announced that xAI is buying X in a merger between two of his companies. Musk originally purchased the social media platform known as Twitter for $44 billion in 2022.
@xAI has acquired @X in an all-stock transaction. The combination values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion ($45B less $12B debt).
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 28, 2025
Since its founding two years ago, xAI has rapidly become one of the leading AI labs in the world, building models and data centers at…
Sentiment around Tesla soured as Musk took a more active role in politics. In a YouGov/Yahoo News poll taken at the end of March, two-thirds of respondents said they would not consider buying or leasing a Tesla. More than a third of total respondents said Musk was at least part of the reason.
Still, automotive analyst Lauren Fix told Straight Arrow News the political divide surrounding Musk and DOGE has very little to do with the dismal quarterly deliveries, which came in at the lowest amount in nearly three years.
“You instantly think, ‘It’s all the people out there protesting.’ That’s a small piece of the pie,” Fix said.
Instead, she said Tesla is facing increased competition from China’s BYD and domestic brands entering the EV space. Tesla sales in China were down 11.5% year-over-year in March, according to data from China Passenger Car Association.
