DOGE Program Winds Down as Musk Steps Back \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ Elon Musk’s controversial role in the federal government’s cost-cutting initiative, DOGE, appears to be coming to a close as he hints at stepping away and federal agencies absorb its functions. Recent political and corporate setbacks, including a major loss in Wisconsin and declining Tesla sales, have fueled speculation about DOGE’s early wind-down. Trump has praised Musk’s work but acknowledged the program is nearing its conclusion.
DOGE Shutdown Signs Quick Looks
- Musk’s Role Fading: Elon Musk hints he’ll leave DOGE soon.
- Trump Acknowledges Transition: Says DOGE “will end” and agencies will take over.
- Program Originally Temporary: DOGE set to run through July 4, 2026, but may wrap early.
- Staff Reassignment: DOGE employees now embedded in federal agencies as layoffs begin.
- Political Setback: Musk-backed Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate defeated despite $21M campaign push.
- Tesla Struggles: 13% drop in Q1 2025 sales adds to Musk’s pressures.
- Legal Clock Ticking: Musk limited to 130 days as a special government employee.
- Trump Still Supportive: Calls Musk “a very talented guy” but sees his return to business inevitable.
- Controversial Methods: DOGE has faced scrutiny for its aggressive budget cuts and data access.
- Musk’s Future Unclear: No commitment to departure date, but momentum is shifting.
Deep Look
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—one of the boldest and most controversial initiatives of President Donald Trump’s second term—appears to be nearing an accelerated shutdown. At the center of the program has been Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur whose blend of Silicon Valley disruption and political provocation made DOGE as polarizing as it was headline-grabbing. Now, both Trump and Musk are signaling a winding down of the project, well ahead of its initial July 4, 2026 target.
Originally launched to overhaul government bureaucracy, trim wasteful spending, and slash the federal deficit, DOGE began as an advisory panel but soon evolved into an operational force embedded within the federal government. Musk shared leadership with biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, but Ramaswamy exited early to pursue a gubernatorial campaign in Ohio, leaving Musk in the spotlight. Under Musk’s leadership, DOGE became synonymous with aggressive cost-cutting, canceled federal contracts, and the deployment of loyal operatives across agencies to push a radical vision of fiscal efficiency.
But that vision is now confronting both internal fatigue and external pressures. In recent weeks, DOGE employees have been reassigned to federal departments, and mass government-wide layoffs—a key part of DOGE’s operational plan—have begun. The centralized power of DOGE is dispersing, a clear signal that its role as a standalone entity is diminishing.
This strategic pivot has unfolded alongside a series of setbacks for Musk, both politically and professionally.
On Tuesday, voters in Wisconsin delivered a blow to Musk’s political clout, rejecting his heavily funded candidate, Brad Schimel, in a critical state Supreme Court race. Despite investing over $21 million of his own money and making high-profile campaign appearances, Musk’s involvement failed to sway the electorate. Instead, Susan Crawford, the liberal-leaning candidate, emerged victorious, securing the court’s progressive majority and signaling that Musk’s influence may not be as potent on the national political stage as once assumed.
Musk himself acknowledged the loss with a cryptic message posted on X (formerly Twitter) at 3:13 a.m.:
“I expected to lose, but there is value to losing a piece for a positional gain.”
At the same time, Musk’s flagship company, Tesla, reported a 13% year-over-year drop in deliveries for Q1 2025—the company’s largest decline in years. The mounting pressure on his business empire may further complicate his ability to remain involved in the day-to-day grind of Washington politics.
And then there’s the clock. Musk was appointed as a special government employee, a status that limits him to 130 workdays in a 365-day period. With May 30 marking the 130th day since Trump’s second inauguration on January 20, questions are emerging about whether Musk can continue legally in his role—or whether he’ll quietly step away without fanfare.
Yet, Musk has not confirmed any exit date, and the administration has not clarified how it’s tracking his service time. In a March 27 interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier, Musk suggested he believed DOGE could hit its main target—cutting the deficit by $1 trillion—within his time frame. However, the internal math doesn’t support that claim. DOGE’s own metrics show it’s far short of the goal, and critics argue the numbers are inflated, difficult to verify, or outright misleading.
Despite this, President Trump remains publicly supportive. Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said:
“I’d keep him as long as I could keep him. He’s a very talented guy.”
But he also acknowledged the reality:
“At some point, he’s going to be going back [to his companies].”
Indeed, Trump’s past is filled with fiery breakups and dramatic public fallouts with advisers. But that hasn’t been the case with Musk—at least not yet. Instead, Trump appears to be positioning Musk’s departure as part of a natural progression, not a rupture.
DOGE was never meant to be permanent. Designed as a temporary cost-cutting agency, it was charged with streamlining the federal government, reducing the deficit, and shaking up entrenched bureaucracies. Musk’s appointment added notoriety—and volatility—to the effort. His approach often involved public stunts, confrontational rhetoric, and an unapologetic disdain for Washington’s “deep state,” earning both admiration from conservative populists and condemnation from watchdog groups and civil servants.
Many saw DOGE as an experiment in corporate-style governance, one where unconventional strategies were used to force rapid change in a historically slow-moving system. Musk’s supporters praised his ability to cut red tape and apply entrepreneurial tactics to government operations. His critics, however, argued that DOGE’s structure lacked oversight and was dangerously opaque. Reports emerged of DOGE operatives gaining access to sensitive data, targeting programs for termination without clear justification, and bypassing standard accountability mechanisms.
One of DOGE’s early missions was to cancel hundreds of federal contracts, some of which were deemed inefficient or redundant, others viewed as politically objectionable by the administration. The campaign created tension within agencies and prompted legal reviews, particularly regarding data access and internal power shifts.
And yet, despite its ambition and controversy, DOGE’s overall impact on the federal budget remains murky. Analysts have struggled to determine whether the cost savings are meaningful or sustainable. The program’s own self-assessments have been criticized as “rosy at best” and “ideologically motivated” by nonpartisan budget experts.
As for Musk’s personal legacy within the project, that too remains complicated. While his presence gave DOGE a unique platform and inspired a fervent following among anti-establishment voters, it also made the program a lightning rod. His poll numbers consistently trailed Trump’s, and Democrats capitalized on his polarizing image, particularly in the recent Wisconsin election.
Trump has been careful not to overcommit to DOGE’s future without Musk. When asked if the program would continue in his absence, Trump hedged:
“Cabinet officials have worked closely with Musk and may keep some of the DOGE people at their agencies… But at a certain point I think it will end.”
In many ways, DOGE’s story mirrors Musk’s approach to everything: disruptive, intense, headline-dominating—and ultimately short-lived. If it does shut down in the coming months, it will leave behind a trail of reorganized departments, canceled initiatives, and a deeper ideological divide over how government should be run.
Whether Musk’s tenure will be remembered as a bold, needed reset or a chaotic overreach will likely depend on what comes next—and whether anyone else can carry forward his vision without the force of his personality.
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