Donald Trump has expressed his views on Elon Musk as the Tesla CEO’s tenure as a ‘special government employee’ draws to a close.
Rumors surfaced on April 2 about Donald Trump possibly discussing Elon Musk stepping back from his role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
According to a Politico report, ‘three Trump insiders’ indicated that while the president appreciates Musk’s efforts with DOGE, both men have recently concluded that the time has come for him to leave.
This speculation arose amid confusion about Musk’s actual role in the government. In February, the White House described him as a ‘senior advisor’ to Trump, while others referred to the Tesla CEO as a ‘special government employee’.
Any suggestions from the White House about Musk ‘stepping down’ were quickly refuted.
Musk’s role has been clarified as that of a special government employee (SGE), with his tenure naturally ending since SGEs cannot work more than 130 days within the government.
Elon Musk is anticipated to conclude his role as a special government employee leading the Department of Efficiency (DOGE) by about May 30.
Trump has since commented on Musk’s impending departure, telling reporters aboard Air Force One, as reported by the Post: “I want Elon to stay as long as possible.”
Trump further elaborated on his admiration for Musk, listing three reasons why he appreciates him.
The president stated: “Number one: I like him. Number two: He’s doing a great job. Number three: He is a patriot.”
Trump emphasized that there is ‘no rush’ but acknowledged that eventually, “there will be a point in time” for Musk to move on, considering he has “a number of companies to run” and attend to.
Musk, indeed, has Tesla to focus on, along with addressing the potential impact of Trump’s tariffs on his business.
Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on imports of ‘automobiles and certain automobile parts’.
A White House fact sheet describes the proclamation as a measure ‘addressing a critical threat to US national security,’ with Trump ‘taking action to protect America’s automobile industry, which is vital to national security and has been undermined by excessive imports threatening America’s domestic industrial base and supply chains’.
Tesla responded by writing a letter to US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, explaining that some vehicle parts are ‘difficult or impossible’ to source domestically. Given that 20 to 25 percent of Tesla parts are sourced from abroad, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, production could become more expensive.
Musk noted in a Twitter post: “Important to note that Tesla is NOT unscathed here. The tariff impact on Tesla is still significant.”
As for Musk’s political career, Trump indicated that he ‘would’ consider appointing the ‘great’ SpaceX founder to a different role in the future.