Elon Musk arrived in the nation’s capital with the chain saw-wielding swagger of a tech titan who had never met a problem he couldn’t solve with lots of money, long hours or a well-calibrated algorithm.

As Mr. Musk steps away from Washington, he faces concerns over his prolonged absence from his businesses including Tesla, SpaceX, xAI and X.

“DOGE’s over-promising and underperforming results damaged not only Musk’s reputation but also the standing of the Trump administration as a whole, and beyond that, probably the reputations and chances for success of future governmental reform cost-cutting measures,” presidential historian David Pietrusza told the Washington Examiner.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump faces the challenge of convincing Republican senators, global investors, voters and even Elon Musk that he won’t bury the federal government in debt with his multitrillion-dollar tax breaks package.

Mr. Musk, who says he will devote more time to his private companies, never came close to achieving his goal of cutting $1 trillion from the federal budget.

President Trump has pulled his nomination of Jared Isaacman, a billionaire commercial astronaut with close ties to Elon Musk, as NASA administrator.

Elon Musk is leaving Washington after a short but turbulent stint in government and getting back to his numerous businesses, each with their own set of issues for the billionaire to address.

Katie Miller's reported departure from DOGE to work for Musk had the internet speculating that she had left her husband, too.