Was Elon Musk's Foray Into Politics a Success? Experts Weigh In
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
Last week, Elon Musk said he had "done enough" after spending five months working hand in hand with President Donald Trump as head of the Department of Government Efficiency.
As the tech CEO's focus swings away from the White House and back to the companies that made him the richest man in the world, Newsweek asked experts whether his time on the front line of politics was a success or a failure.
Newsweek has contacted Musk for comment via the press office for X, formerly Twitter.
The Context
While Musk has steadily increased his political commentary over the past several years, his firsthand involvement in campaigning began during the 2024 presidential election. He endorsed Trump after the Pennsylvania assassination attempt and donated millions to the Republican's campaign via America PAC, Musk's super political action committee. After Trump's victory in November, Musk joined his team as the head of DOGE, a project the billionaire had pitched on the campaign trail to cut federal spending and reduce the size of the government.
What To Know
The tech mogul entered politics last year with the explicit purpose of getting Trump elected for a second term as president, spending more than $75 million in the process.
While Musk achieved that goal, experts told Newsweek that his time at the White House would come to be seen as a mixed bag, especially with the big expectations the billionaire had attached to his signature project, DOGE.
"Musk succeeded in grabbing attention and rebranding government reform as a Silicon Valley-style disruption," Casey Burgat, the director of legislative affairs at George Washington University, said. "But beyond the optics, DOGE has fallen far short of its promises."
"The administration pledged $2 trillion in savings; independent reviews suggest only a fraction of that has materialized, and even those numbers are riddled with accounting errors and double-counted wins," he added.
DOGE's own count of its savings puts the total at $170 billion, and even though it's far less than Musk's original pledge, he has been one of the figures in Trump's circle most strongly associated with cuts to federal spending, prompting protests against his companies, most notably Tesla.
Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty
Burgat continued: "Musk's reputation has undergone a sharp recalibration. For years, he cultivated a persona as an eccentric but brilliant innovator. But his stint with DOGE placed him squarely in the political arena—where admiration curdles fast.
"For critics, he's become a symbol of unaccountable power: a billionaire with a government badge, running roughshod over norms and institutions.
"Even many conservatives who cheered his takedowns of federal 'bloat' are now quietly distancing themselves as the legal challenges pile up and as Musk's more erratic behavior—including the targeting of public officials and abrupt policy reversals—becomes a political liability."
Eric Schiffer, a top tech investor and the chair of the private equity firm Patriarch Organization, told Newsweek that recency bias was still affecting public perception of Musk's political spree, and that over time it would be seen differently, much like Trump himself.
Elon Musk, left, and President Donald Trump shaking hands during the men's NCAA wrestling competition at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on March 22.
Elon Musk, left, and President Donald Trump shaking hands during the men's NCAA wrestling competition at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on March 22.
Getty Images
Schiffer said: "The public backlash is a question of 'how much of this is real?' No one really knows how deep it is with the Trump administration up to this point, and they're directing that anger at a vulnerability of Trump, which is Elon, and his wealth."
He also said that while Tesla's reputation was slumping, its sales numbers remained strong, and the peak of anti-Musk protests had likely passed.
Schiffer continued: "So far, he's holding up fairly well. In China, the numbers are still strong. We're going to have to see how it shakes out. The challenge is the same in Europe and overseas, where he's associated with draconian policies. But that could also turn.
"As tariffs begin to be integrated, and Elon distances himself from the administration, people won't retain long-term negative biases. They dissipate over time."
Conversely, Burgat said Musk's time in politics served to accelerate polarization, with those who support him going even further, while his critics grew to oppose him even more.
"Among the public, the polarization has intensified," he said. "For fans, he's still a maverick hero; for skeptics, he's morphed into something far more dangerous: a privatized version of government without the guardrails."
What Happens Next
Musk said in a recent meeting with Tesla investors that he would be spending more time with the company. He said in April, "I think starting probably next month, May, my time allocation to DOGE will drop significantly."
Vice President JD Vance echoed the sentiment that DOGE would continue in some form without Musk, telling reporters: "DOGE has got a lot of work to do, and that work is going to continue after Elon leaves. But fundamentally, Elon is going to remain a friend and an adviser of both me and the president."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Japan's ex-top FX diplomat expects yen to rise near 140 by year-end
By Leika Kihara and Yoshifumi Takemoto TOKYO (Reuters) -A narrowing U.S.-Japan interest rate gap, rather than any effort by President Donald Trump to weaken the dollar, will likely lift the yen to around 135-140 against the U.S. unit by year-end, Japan's former top currency diplomat said on Friday. Markets are rife with speculation that Trump - who in the past accused Japan and China of currency manipulation - will pressure Tokyo to help weaken the dollar against the yen to give U.S. exports a trade advantage. Mitsuhiro Furusawa, a former currency diplomat who retains close ties with Japanese and overseas incumbent policymakers, said it was unclear whether the Trump administration was explicitly taking a weak-dollar policy. "It's not easy for policymakers to intentionally weaken the dollar," Furusawa said in an interview. "Having made clear that tariffs are the main tools (for negotiation), I don't think Washington needs to rely much on currencies to achieve its goals," said Furusawa, who also served as the International Monetary Fund's deputy managing director until 2021. Still, the U.S. likely wants to avoid further dollar rises from hurting exports, Furusawa said. Japan, for its part, wants to prevent a weak yen from pushing up inflation, he said. "As such, they are eye-to-eye on this front. That means the yen will likely rise gradually," said Furusawa. The diverging monetary policy direction between Japan and the U.S. will also prop up the yen with the Federal Reserve's next move seen as an interest rate cut, while the Bank of Japan (BOJ) eyes further rate hikes, Furusawa said. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has said the bank will continue raising rates if economic improvements keep inflation on course to durably hit its 2% target, though he has signaled a pause until there is more clarity on the fallout from Trump's tariffs. "If Japan succeeds in reaching a broad trade agreement with the U.S. possibly at this month's G7 summit, that will reduce uncertainty," Furusawa said. Real wages will also rise and underpin consumption once food inflation dissipates, he said. "If we see such positive developments, the BOJ could hike rates again in the latter half of this year," Furusawa said, adding the yen "will likely strengthen to around 135-140 to the dollar by year-end." The yen stood around 143.90 to the dollar in Asia on Friday. The BOJ probably wants to eventually raise its short-term policy rate target - currently at 0.5% - above 1%, though there is uncertainty on whether it would succeed, said Furusawa, who is currently president of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp's Institute for Global Financial Affairs. Japan is continuing trade talks with the U.S. with a focus on gaining concessions on automobile tariffs. Domestic media has reported the two sides may seek to clinch a deal in time for the G7 summit on June 15-16. Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato caused a stir last month when he said Japan could use its $1 trillion-plus holdings of U.S. Treasuries as a card in trade talks with Washington. He later said Tokyo had no plan to threaten selling U.S. Treasuries. Furusawa said it was natural for Japan, as a negotiating tactic, to say all options were on the table. But whether Japan can actually use it as a bargaining tool was questionable, partly as threatening to sell U.S. Treasuries could backfire by angering Trump and derailing trade negotiations. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Analysis-NATO's dilemma: how Zelenskiy can attend summit without provoking Trump
By Andrew Gray, Sabine Siebold and Lili Bayer BRUSSELS (Reuters) -Officials organising a NATO summit in The Hague this month are expected to keep it short, restrict discussion of Ukraine, and choreograph meetings so that Volodymyr Zelenskiy can somehow be in town without provoking Donald Trump. Though the Ukrainian president is widely expected to attend the summit in some form, NATO has yet to confirm whether he is actually invited. Diplomats say he may attend a pre-summit dinner but be kept away from the main summit meeting. Whether the brief summit statement will even identify Russia as a threat or express support for Ukraine is still up in the air. The careful steps are all being taken to avoid angering Washington, much less provoking any repeat of February's White House blow-up between Trump and Zelenskiy that almost torpedoed the international coalition supporting Kyiv. NATO's European members, who see Russia as an existential threat and NATO as the principal means of countering it, want to signal their continued strong support for Ukraine. But they are also desperate to avoid upsetting a volatile Trump, who stunned them at a summit seven years ago by threatening to quit the alliance altogether. If Zelenskiy does not attend in some form, it would be "at least a PR disaster", acknowledged a senior NATO diplomat. Since Russia's invasion three years ago, Zelenskiy has regularly attended NATO summits as the guest of honour, where alliance members pledged billions in weapons and condemned Russia for an illegal war of conquest. Leaders repeatedly promised that Ukraine would one day join NATO. But since Washington's shift under Trump towards partly accepting Russia's justifications for the war and disparaging Zelenskiy, the 32-member alliance no longer speaks with a single voice about Europe's deadliest conflict since World War Two. Trump has taken Ukraine's NATO membership off the table, unilaterally granting Moscow one of its main demands. After dressing down Zelenskiy in the Oval Office in February, Trump cut vital U.S. military and intelligence support for Ukraine for days. Since then, the two men publicly mended fences in a meeting in St Peter's Basilica for the funeral of Pope Francis. But mostly they have spoken remotely, with Zelenskiy twice phoning the White House on speakerphone while surrounded by four friendly Europeans -- Britain's Keir Starmer, France's Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Friedrich Merz and Poland's Donald Tusk. SPENDING BOOST Trump is expected to come away from The Hague with a big diplomatic victory as NATO members heed his longstanding complaints that they do not spend enough on defence and agree a much higher target. They are expected to boost their goal for traditional military spending to 3.5% of economic output from 2%. A further pledge to spend 1.5% on related expenses such as infrastructure and cyber defence would raise the total to 5% demanded by Trump. But the summit itself and its accompanying written statement are expected to be unusually short, minimising the chances of flare-ups or disagreements. A pledge to develop recommendations for a new Russia strategy has been kicked into the long grass. Meanwhile, Zelenskiy may have to be content with an invitation to a pre-summit dinner, hosted by Dutch King Willem-Alexander, diplomats say. Unlike at NATO's previous two annual summits, the leaders do not plan to hold a formal meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, the official venue for talks between the alliance and Kyiv. The senior NATO diplomat said a working dinner with either foreign ministers or defence ministers could instead serve as an NUC. 'PROPERLY REPRESENTED' On Wednesday, NATO boss Mark Rutte said he had invited Ukraine to the summit, but sidestepped a question on whether the invitation included Zelenskiy himself. After meeting Rutte on Monday, Zelenskiy said on X that it was "important that Ukraine is properly represented" at the summit. "That would send the right signal to Russia," he said. U.S. and Ukrainian officials did not reply to questions about the nature of any invitation to Ukraine. Some European countries are still willing to say in public that they hope to see Zelenskiy invited as the head of the Ukrainian delegation. Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said he would like to see a "delegation led by President Zelenskiy". Asked about an invitation for Zelenskiy, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said "I, for my part, strongly welcome the invitation" without giving further details. But diplomats have tried to play down the importance of the formal status of Zelenskiy's role: "Many allies want to have Zelenskiy at the summit, but there is flexibility on the precise format that would allow his presence," said a second senior NATO diplomat. A senior European diplomat said: "We should not get stuck on 'NUC or no NUC'. If he comes to the leaders' dinner, that would be the minimum." (Additional reporting by by Lidia KellyEditing by Peter Graff)
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Harvard University expands lawsuit on Trump's foreign student ban
Harvard University on Thursday expanded a lawsuit against the US government's decision to block international students from attending the elite institution. On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation suspending international visas for students due to national security concerns and their failure to comply with federal agencies. Harvard expanded a lawsuit it filed last month, challenging the ban. In the lawsuit, it accused the Trump administration of attempting to pressure the institution with an unlawful retaliatory measure. "With the stroke of a pen, the DHS [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi Noem] and the President have sought to erase a quarter of Harvard's student body — international students who contribute significantly to the University and its mission and the country," the lawsuit says. "Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard." Late last month, a federal judge temporarily blocked the US government's plan to exclude foreign students. The judge's decision is likely to be just the first step in a long legal battle. It is not a final ruling. Trump has accused Harvard and other elite US universities of allowing anti-Semitism on campus. In April, his administration sent a list of demands to Harvard, which the institution has refused to adopt.
