US President Donald Trump presented Elon Musk with a large ceremonial key during a farewell event in the Oval Office on Friday, marking the billionaire entrepreneur’s departure as a special government employee overseeing the Department of Government Efficiency.
The golden key, housed in a brown box, was described by Trump as a gift he reserves for “very special people.” The gesture capped off Musk’s tumultuous tenure leading the DOGE, as he now prepares to return full-time to his private business ventures.
Musk is stepping down from his position spearheading DOGE and will now rededicate himself to his companies, including electric automaker Tesla, rocket company SpaceX, and social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Trump credited Musk with “a colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington” and said some of the DOGE staff would remain in the administration.
Musk, who wore all black, including a T-shirt that said “The Dogefather,” nodded along as the president listed contracts that had been slashed under his leadership.
“I think the DOGE team is doing an incredible job,” Musk said after accepting the key from the president. “They’re going to continue to be doing an incredible job.” Trump reiterated the praise, saying that while Musk was formally stepping down, “he’s going to be back and forth, I imagine.”
The president also praised Musk’s “very great talents” and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to making the DOGE budget cuts permanent. “Today it’s about a man named Elon,” Trump said. He called Musk’s leadership “the most sweeping and consequential government reform effort in generations.”
Musk’s farewell followed an announcement he made on Wednesday, where he said his “scheduled time” in the Trump administration had “come to an end.” He thanked Trump for the “opportunity to reduce wasteful spending.”
On Friday, he reiterated his desire to remain available to the president: “I hope to continue to provide advice whenever the president would like.” Trump responded, “I hope so.”
Musk had led efforts to streamline government operations through DOGE, but stepped down amid mounting external pressures and recent legislative developments.
Despite ambitious goals, the Tesla chief fell short of his pledge to cut USD 1 trillion, or even USD 2 trillion in federal spending. He later revised that goal to USD 150 billion for the current fiscal year.
Musk’s tenure left a deep mark on the federal bureaucracy, with thousands of government employees fired or pushed out. Several agencies were severely reduced, most notably the US Agency for International Development, which had provided vital aid to vulnerable populations.
Though Musk is formally exiting his government post, both he and Trump left the door open for continued collaboration, signaling his influence will remain a presence in the administration’s future efforts.
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