Musk, who had always described himself as a political moderate and criticised Trump for being too old to be President in 2022, transformed into one of the most bitter critics of liberal politics
After nearly five months of being virtually at the helm of affairs in the Donald Trump administration, billionaire Elon Musk called it a day on his political sojourn. Musk’s tenure as the purger-in-chief of the Trump administration — officially labelled the department of government efficiency (DOGE) — was a mixed bag for the South African immigrant turned poster boy of the American right wing.
The 53-year-old entrepreneur, who had always described himself as a political moderate and criticised Trump for being too old to be President in 2022, transformed into one of the most bitter critics of liberal politics. He bankrolled Trump’s campaign for a second term by donating nearly $300 million in 2024. He became Trump’s most trusted lieutenant in the fight against wokeism, which is largely prevalent in Democrat-leaning states like California.
Both Trump and Musk shared the perception that all was not well in America, leading the Tesla CEO to head DOGE — a role that brought him into conflict with several of Trump’s Cabinet members. The common ground, however, ended there.
Musk, himself an immigrant to the United States in the 1990s, did not align with Trump’s immigration policies and faced the wrath of Make America Great Again (MAGA) activists. He also opposed Trump’s pro-crude oil stance, which went against the interests of his electric vehicle company, Tesla.
Similarly, Musk criticised Trump’s partnership with SoftBank and his rival OpenAI on a $500 billion AI infrastructure project. Trump’s flagship spending initiative — the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act — which offered tax cuts and vast government spending, was, according to Musk, in direct contradiction to the mandate given to him to rein in government expenditure.
The SpaceX CEO’s political activism led to a 45 per cent drop in Tesla’s stock price. His net worth declined by $15 billion, from $400 billion on 31 October 2024 to $385 billion on 28 May 2025. While his disillusionment with Trump had been evident for some time, as it took a toll on his businesses, the OBBB Act rendered Musk’s position redundant and set the stage for his final exit from Washington.
