Although he has only been in charge of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for a total of 130 days, Elon Musk has reportedly disclosed that he will be resigning from his position as head of the DOGE in the month of May.
Elon Musk and the cryptocurrency known as DOGE have been at the forefront of the news ever since Donald Trump, the President of the United States, returned to power for a second time earlier this year.
A significant portion of the president’s policies up to this point has been centred around cuts relating to DOGE, and it appears that he has held a position as Trump’s closest advisor.
Musk made a commitment to reduce spending by up to two trillion dollars with the announcement of this new government advisory board. He initially set the year 2026 as the timeframe for completing all of the tasks, but has since retracted his commitment to this ambitious objective.
Musk believes that he would be able to reach a savings objective of one trillion dollars before he departs his position as head of the department. However, his departure comes far earlier than was anticipated, and the goalposts appear to have changed towards achieving this aim.
During an interview with Bret Baier, an anchor for Fox News, Musk disclosed his plan to leave his post in the government. This news has come as a surprise to many individuals who had previously considered his position in government to be untouchable, despite the fact that the president is alleged to have placed limits on his power.
The ‘accidental’ removal of Ebola preventive efforts and key nuclear weapon officials that placed national security at risk was one of the many issues that Musk has addressed as head of DOGE. He has also imposed massive funding and spending cuts across practically all departments of government.
However, analysts have questioned the accuracy of these data, so there appears to be still a long way to go if the goal of one trillion dollars is to be met within the next month. According to the official website of DOGE, savings of 140 billion dollars have been already made so far.
There is a strong possibility that Musk’s departure from DOGE at such an early stage is connected to his position within the federal authorities. According to the official classification, he is a “special government employee,” which means that he is only permitted to work 130 days out of 365 in a year. If he worked every day from the inauguration until May 30, he would be able to complete his duties.
Trump responded, “Well, I can’t tell you that,” when he was asked whether the activities of DOGE would continue after Musk would leave the company. “I think some of them may try and keep the DOGE people with them, but you know, at a certain point it will end.”
Since Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk’s former partner-in-chief, left his position in the department just before Trump’s inauguration, the richest man in the world is now solely in charge of the agency. This is not the first time that departmental reshuffles have threatened the existence of DOGE. In fact, this is not the first time that departmental reshuffles have happened.
Only time will tell what role the billionaire will play after his departure from the agency that seemed to be designed specifically for him. However, it is still to be seen whether Musk will continue to maintain a strong voice within the government and maintain a tight relationship with President Trump.
