Musk to exit US government role after rare break with Trump
WASHINGTON - Billionaire Elon Musk announced he was leaving his role in US government, intended to reduce federal spending, shortly after his first major break with President Donald Trump over his signature spending bill.
"As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President Donald Trump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending," he wrote on his social media platform X.
"The DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government," he added.
The South African-born tech tycoon had said Trump's bill would increase the deficit and undermine the work of Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has fired tens of thousands of people.
Musk -- who was a constant presence at Trump's side before pulling back to focus on his Space X and Tesla businesses -- also complained that DOGE had become a "whipping boy" for dissatisfaction with the administration.
"I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing," Musk said in an interview with CBS News, an excerpt of which aired late Tuesday.
Trump's "One Big, Beautiful Bill Act" -- which passed the US House last week and now moves to the Senate -- offers sprawling tax relief and spending cuts and is the centerpiece of his domestic agenda.
But critics warn it will decimate health care and balloon the national deficit by as much as $4 trillion over a decade.
"A bill can be big, or it can be beautiful. But I don't know if it can be both. My personal opinion," Musk said in the interview, which will be aired in full on Sunday.
The White House sought to play down any differences over US government spending, without directly naming Musk.
"The Big Beautiful Bill is NOT an annual budget bill," Trump's Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said on Musk's social network, X, after the tech titan's comments aired.
All DOGE cuts would have to be carried out through a separate bill targeting the federal bureaucracy, according to US Senate rules, Miller added.
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Daily Maverick
20 minutes ago
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Daily Maverick
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What happened to honeybush during colonialism and apartheid? For centuries, during colonisation, slavery and apartheid in South Africa, control over commercialised plants and animals was handed to white-owned business. Black people were forced off their land by the colonial and apartheid governments. Land was broken up into individual title deeds and handed over to white settlers for commercial agriculture, or to the government for westernised conservation. The seizure of land for conservation, plantations and commercial agriculture led to the separation of wild plants like honeybush from those who traditionally used them. Honeybush became the property of landowners: the apartheid government, white-owned timber companies, and white commercial farmers. However, these unjust barriers did not prevent so-called Coloured (mixed-race) and Indigenous Khoi and San communities from continuing to harvest and trade small amounts of honeybush tea. How should transformation have happened? 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IOL News
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'This pioneering work showcases how our real-time, proactive use of innovative, locally developed technology, combined with a strong focus on operational excellence and cost savings, helps us prevent unnecessary waste and reduce shrinkage-related costs - efficiencies that allow us to pass even more value and savings directly to our customers,' Dewaldo Diedericks, General Manager of Usave said. The system monitors temperatures in critical areas, like cold storage, freezer rooms and the salesfloor, and issues alerts when predetermined thresholds are surpassed, thereby preventing spoilage and optimising energy consumption of equipment in these areas. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The system, developed in conjunction with Azoteq, a home-grown South African technology firm, harnesses SmartSense™ technology to effectively monitor and manage power consumption within its stores. Image: Supplied. Data is delivered through a user-friendly dashboard that equips management with real-time insights to enhance decision-making, ensure improved food quality and prevent costly equipment failures. Generator runtime and fuel levels are also tracked, enabling the business to follow more efficient servicing and refueling schedules. "In this way Usave avoids unnecessary maintenance, further reduces costs and minimises the likelihood of unexpected outages in instances where a switchover to generator is necessitated. To generate additional savings, Usave supermarkets also regularly simulate power outages at supermarkets on time-of-use (ToU) tariff structures, switching over to battery during peak times when electricity is more costly, and charging the batteries during off-peak times," the company said. 'We have been able to respond and prevent freezer failures as they occur, achieving a 0% rate of stock loss across all stores where this system has been implemented to date. In addition, the seamless, automated transition from generator power to hybrid inverter and battery power during outages, has saved the business more than 80 000 hours' worth of costly services and fossil fuel consumption,' Diedericks added. Already running at 202 locations, Usave said it plans to equip all its stores with SmartSense technology, gradually replacing older uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems. As part of its sustainability efforts, the discount retailer is also gradually incorporating solar energy into its operational strategy at its already compatible hybrid system stores. BUSINESS REPORT Visit:
