Musk leaves behind upheaval in Washington

Elon Musk descended upon the US capital with the bravado of a billionaire who had never met a problem he couldn’t bulldoze with money, sleepless nights or a cleverly coded algorithm.

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President Donald Trump welcomed Musk’s entrance with open arms, hailing him as a “smart guy” who “really cares for our country.” The world’s richest man and a major campaign donor quickly embedded himself into the highest levels of government. In no time, he was presiding over Cabinet meetings in a “tech support” T-shirt and a black MAGA hat, hoisting his young son in the Oval Office, travelling on Air Force One, and even sleeping in the White House.

But the whirlwind reign of Musk, often dubbed Trump’s “co-president” by Democrats, has now drawn to a quiet, if chaotic, close. This week, Musk announced he would step down from his post as senior adviser after questioning Trump's flagship legislative proposal and revealing plans to curtail future political donations.

A disruptive vision fizzles out

Musk entered government with ambitions as lofty as his rockets. With previous triumphs at Tesla, SpaceX, and his acquisition of Twitter, he believed Washington could be reengineered to meet Silicon Valley standards. But his legacy is one of grand pronouncements and modest results.

Agencies were gutted, thousands of federal employees dismissed — many indiscrimi-nately and later rehired — but few tangible savings materialised. His initial goal of trimming USD 2 trillion from federal spending shrank to USD 1 trillion, then to USD 150 billion, a figure that may still fall short.

In Silicon Valley parlance, his promises amounted to vapourware — ambitious products that never ship. Musk’s tenure stirred up enormous controversy but delivered little of the efficiency or innovation he promised. Trump, undeterred, praised Musk on his Truth Social platform. “This will be his last day, but not really, because he will always be with us, helping all the way. Elon is terrific!” Trump also announced a press conference to mark Musk’s departure.

Not your typical presidential adviser