Donald Trump has told his Cabinet that Elon Musk will be stepping down from DOGE in the next few weeks, according to a new report.
The Tesla billionaire will be taking a backseat role as an adviser and moving back to take control of his ailing businesses, Politico reports.
The Daily Beast has confirmed that Musk has told friends he will be leaving his White House roles.
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The news comes after the billionaire’s humiliation in the disastrous state Supreme Court election in Wisconsin.
Musk was in the firing line after liberal appellate Judge Susan Crawford won the $100 million Wisconsin state Supreme Court race by a much greater margin than expected on Tuesday. The world’s richest man traveled to the state for a $1 million giveaway to voters and wore a cheesehead hat during a rally in his failed attempt to bolster the conservative vote.
Now it seems his days in the political limelight are numbered.
The White House has been facing growing pressure to restrain Musk’s activities and limit his influence as polls reflect his declining popularity in the country.
There were also complaints from GOP districts that Musk’s unpopularity could hurt election chances in the crucial 2026 midterms.
Politico reports that Trump is still “pleased” with Musk and his DOGE lieutenants but that “both men” agreed it was time for him to move into a “supporting role.”
The startling 10-point loss in Wisconsin will likely speed up the process, although the tech tycoon won’t vanish from the White House stage altogether.
He is said to be settling for an informal role as an adviser even before the 130-day cap on his current role as a designated “special government employee” is up. The limit means he had a limited tenure as leader of the Department of Government Efficiency.
The 130 days lasted until the end of May or early June.
Vice President JD Vance hinted at the move during a speech to the Munich Security Conference last month when he said, “I say this with all humor: If American democracy can survive 10 years of Greta Thunberg’s scolding, you guys can survive a few months of Elon Musk.”
Stories have emerged in recent weeks of the increasing frustration of White House staff over Musk’s late-night posts on his X social media platform, including information that was not supposed to be made public or wasn’t sufficiently vetted.
Politico reports that Trump first told Cabinet members that Musk was transitioning back to his businesses at a March 24 Cabinet meeting.
And Musk told Bret Baier in his Fox News interview: “I think we will have accomplished most of the work required to reduce the deficit by $1 trillion within that time frame.”
Musk has also worried about the time he has spent away from his businesses. Tesla’s stock has dropped alarmingly since he switched to being Trump’s wingman, and the carmaker’s electric vehicles have become targets for angry opponents of his DOGE job cuts and budget downsizing.
