Love him or hate him, Musk made quite the impression during his tenure at DOGE in DC.
As Musk’s 130-day stint as a special government employee in Donald Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” comes to a close, Musk watchers from politics to the business world are weighing in on his departure.
Through DOGE, Musk’s focus on government spending leaned on similarly extreme cost-cutting methods he had honed at Tesla and during his Twitter takeover.
He helped fire thousands of federal employees, slash entire departments, and upend congressional negotiations, to name just a few of his moves. However, the world’s richest man has distanced himself from politics in recent weeks to spend more time on his bruised companies, and has said he plans to do less political spending moving forward.
Though Musk’s political tenure is officially over today, his influence in Washington may still loom large, with DOGE employees embedded in federal agencies. Trump himself said Musk isn’t gone for good in a Truth Social post.
“This will be his last day, but not really, because he will, always, be with us, helping all the way. Elon is terrific!” Trump wrote.
As Musk’s DOGE chapter comes to a close, BI rounded up some of the most noteworthy reactions and reflections to his return to the private sector.
Tesla investor Ross Gerber
Emma McIntyre/Getty Images
A longtime Tesla investor and recent Tesla bear, Ross Gerber signaled his relief in a post on X.
“Best thing that could have happened was getting the heck out of DOGE,” he wrote, adding a link to Tesla’s stock price. Gerber previously told BI that Musk returning to Tesla more full-time won’t necessarily heal the company’s wounds, though, partly because his image is so damaged.
Gerber struck a similar note on CNN on Thursday, saying that he’s “much happier” now, even if the brand damage runs deep, and that Tesla benefits when Musk isn’t in the news.
“I feel like Elon was a little bit naive and wanted to get involved with the Trump administration, and it sort of ended up working out very poorly for him, certainly around the optics,” Gerber said.
Sen. Joni Ernst
Ernst, an Iowa Republican, leads the Senate’s DOGE caucus.
“In just over 100 days, Elon rooted out billions in waste, fraud, and abuse to make government more efficient,” Ernst wrote on X. “This is just the start of making DOGE a lifestyle for Washington by continuing to downsize government and put taxpayers first.”
Fox News columnist David Marcus
Marcus published an opinion piece in Fox News praising Musk’s impact through DOGE.
“Musk has forever changed how Americans look at federal spending, and that is a wonderful thing,” Marcus wrote. He acknowledged that DOGE has cut less from the budget than originally intended — Musk said DOGE has saved $160 billion, far short of the initial $2 trillion goal — but said that its current and future savings “are nothing to sneeze at.”
More than anything, Marcus said that DOGE has brought the issue of federal spending into the public conversation and exposed programs he sees as “blatant and frivolous waste.”
Joe Kernen
Kernen, the co-anchor of CNBC’s show “Squawk Box,” lamented that “The Swamp” had beaten the world’s richest man.
“Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the presidency. Is there going to be any deficit reduction? Nothing ever works. Here we are,” he said.
Scott Galloway
Days before Musk announced his official departure, Galloway responded to Musk’s announcement that he was scaling back political spending. The New York University marketing professor said on an episode of the podcast “Pivot”, which he hosts alongside journalist Kara Swisher, that Musk’s links to DOGE sparked “one of the greatest brand destructions” of all time.
Courtesy of Scott Galloway
Galloway said that Musk’s turn toward politics is to blame for Tesla’s recent backlash, much of which has come from liberals.
“He is a brilliant guy, but he’s alienated his core demographic,” Galloway said.
Scott Jennings
Jennings, a political commentator and author, underlined that the first major fight over Musk’s DOGE-related legacy is about to unfold as Congress considers making $9 billion in proposed cuts permanent.
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“I’m grateful to @elonmusk for what DOGE accomplished. I’m not sure we’ve ever had a more efficient government employee,” Jennings wrote on X. “It’s now up to the GOP to CODIFY the cuts and rid the bureaucracy of the fraud and waste that Elon exposed.”
Robert Reich
A former Labor Secretary, professor, and outspoken DOGE critic, Reich said in a social media post that Musk’s departure might not change much.
“Elon may be on his way out, but DOGE is still gutting countless government programs and services that millions of Americans rely on,” Reich wrote, along with a video about job cuts and other changes.
Wall Street analyst Dan Ives
Wall Street analyst Dan Ives is ready to lead the Tesla bulls again.
This “is music to the ears of Tesla shareholders with Musk now laser focused on Tesla and the autonomous vision ahead,” Ives wrote on X. “A new chapter ahead for Tesla and Musk 🔥🏆🐂🎯”
The White House
“We thank him for his service,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday. “We thank him for getting DOGE off the ground, and the efforts to cut waste, fraud, and abuse will continue.”
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Other politicians across the aisle weighed in
Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Warren, a former Democratic presidential hopeful, signaled that she wasn’t ready to turn a new page with Musk.
“Good riddance — but Musk isn’t off the hook for his chaos and corruption,” the Massachusetts senator wrote on X. “We must hold him accountable.”
Sen. John Kennedy
“Elon Musk is a total baller,” Kennedy, a Republican from Louisiana, wrote on X. “Man’s got tiger blood.”
Gov. Tim Walz
The former Democratic vice presidential nominee didn’t waste another opportunity to troll Musk. “Finally rooting out waste and abuse,” Walz wrote on X.
Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Sen. Ted Cruz
“I think what you said is exactly right, the American people should be saying to Elon, ‘thank you, thank you, thank you,'” Cruz, a Texas Republican, said on Fox News Wednesday night.
“He came for four months and worked free of charge, didn’t collect a salary, he made nothing,” Cruz said. “He rooted out massive waste, fraud, and abuse, and he did so at an enormous cost to himself.”
