How Musk Blew Up DOGE—and Trump's Trust
Can We Blend Technology and Tradition?
Donald Trump and Elon Musk represent two competing visions for America's future: populist nostalgia and Silicon Valley futurism. The public spat between the two men was less about personal animosity and more about which tycoon will win today's war of ideas.
Mr. Musk bets on a postnational, technologically borderless world of electric vehicles, space travel and artificial intelligence. A world where governance plays catch-up to innovation. Mr. Musk won't need to participate in Mr. Trump's chaotic, zero-sum politics, which alienates regulators, investors and global markets critical to Tesla and SpaceX.
Mr. Trump's vision of America is one that protects traditional industries and sovereignty. Mr. Musk's techno-libertarian instincts grow increasingly inconvenient for a Trumpian message grounded in grievance and protectionism.
The Department of Government Efficiency sits at a strange intersection of technological promise and populist energy. But if the Musk-Trump split teaches us anything, it is that ambition without infrastructure collapses. For DOGE to matter, it must grow past celebrity-driven hype. A successful DOGE demands practical adoption to real-life circumstances, established governance structures and regulatory clarity.
—Ishan Misro, University of California, Los Angeles, computational biology
DOGE Did Damage
The DOGE plan has shifted dramatically from its original claim of $2 trillion in savings—an implausible figure without slashing cornerstone programs such as Medicare or Social Security. As of early June, the estimate shrunk down to $180 billion, a number PolitiFact described as 'aspirational and projected.'
To achieve even this reduced target, DOGE attempted to meddle with or downsize critical federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Education Department and the National Science Foundation. These institutions aren't useless—they are engines of public health, education and scientific innovation.
While DOGE is framed as a cost-saving measure for taxpayers, its true purpose is ideological. Rather than streamlining government for greater efficiency, it seeks to reshape federal workers and institutions to align with Mr. Trump's political vision. The result isn't smarter governance—it's a dangerous effort to make the government conform to a partisan agenda, even at the expense of stability, expertise and public trust. The cost of DOGE won't be measured in dollars, but in damage.
—Troy Monte, Bucknell University, finance
DOGE Is Worth It
The overly dramatic breakup of Messers. Trump and Musk blew up publicly, but after a few days the dust settled, and the two gentlemen are moving on. Mr. Musk is off to restore Tesla's standing in the market, while Mr. Trump refocuses on his MAGA mission.
This doesn't mean, however, that America should leave the work that Mr. Musk started in the dust. Mr. Trump should finish what DOGE started. President Reagan's Inaugural Address in 1981 rings true: 'Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.'
Mr. Trump is trying to go back to the basic principles this country was founded on. To achieve that, the president needs to continue cutting the abundance of spending and unnecessary government agencies that are stalling the progress of this great nation. Messrs. Musk and Trump began DOGE together, but Mr. Trump will be the one to finish the job.
—Elaine Kutas, Hillsdale College, English and journalism
We Can Only Blame Ourselves
The apparent political rift between Messrs. Musk and Trump isn't about ego or ideology. It's a reflection of America's unwillingness to confront its fiscal reality.
Mr. Musk is right—the U.S. is spiraling into unsustainable debt, and urgent spending cuts are needed to avoid a full-blown crisis. Mr. Trump is also correct in recognizing that Congress lacks the political will and votes to pass meaningful reform. Why? Because the American people aren't demanding it. Cutting spending sounds good until it touches Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security.
Returning to pre-Covid spending levels isn't radical; it's responsible. Yet voters cling to pandemic-era outlays as if they're permanent entitlements. Mr. Musk warns of a debt spiral. Mr. Trump warns against high taxes that stifle growth. Both are pointing to the same problem from different angles. The Trump-Musk fallout is a distraction. The real story is America's national denial, and the fix starts at the ballot box.
—Avi Wilens, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, financial planning and accounting
Can Trump Be Wrong?
The TMZ-worthy Trump-Musk relationship was ill-fated from the start. A political relationship between two men with massive egos, billions to their names, and used to getting their way could only last so long as their interests aligned. The moment they diverged, with the 'big beautiful bill' as the wedge, their personalities took over, and the mudslinging began.
This breakup displayed a maxim that sums up all of MAGA: One never works with Mr. Trump, only for him. The president is always right, a rule he has the power to enforce. People who can't live by this rule soon die by it, with Mr. Musk another casualty in a long line of victims. Today, that means few if any are left to rebuff Mr. Trump on his worst excesses.
What happens when Mr. Trump is wrong? So far, the administration's answer has been to blame everything on his predecessor, but no president can escape four years without coming face to face with an earth-shattering crisis, nor can he blame every problem on the last guy. Once a crisis arrives, one can only hope that Mr. Trump gets it right—or that someone else is willing to lose a cushy administration job for speaking up.
—Seth Winigrad, Villanova University, law
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