Musk Announces Departure from Trump Administration
On May 28, 2025, local time, Elon Musk, head of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, announced via social media that he would soon resign from his position as a special government employee, thanking Trump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful government spending.
Event Summary:
Resignation Statement and Thanks
Musk posted on social media platform X that his term is coming to an end, expressing gratitude for the trust and collaboration opportunities provided by Trump, emphasizing that the government efficiency team will continue to push for reforms. White House officials stated that his departure process has been initiated.
Resistance and Controversy in Reforms
Before his departure, Musk publicly stated multiple times that the difficulty of reducing the size of the federal government exceeded expectations, and the Department of Government Efficiency is often scapegoated and blamed. He criticized Trump's tax and spending bill for undermining his efforts to reduce the budget deficit and admitted that reforming the federal bureaucracy is extremely challenging.
Future Work Focus
Musk plans to shift his focus to improving federal government computer systems to reduce resource waste and fraud. He cited examples where some departments even need to print data and then manually input it into another computer, highlighting urgent efficiency issues that need to be addressed.
Public Opinion and Impact
U.S. media pointed out that Musk failed to achieve most of his goals in government reform, and his promises to save costs have been questioned as exaggerated. As his influence wanes, his departure is seen as a reflection of the setbacks faced by elite reforms in the context of political gamesmanship and populism in Washington.