Doge's wrecking ball Agencies reel from trail of chaos left by Musk

Elon Musk formally left his role in the Trump administration on Wednesday night, ending a contentious and generally unpopular run as a senior adviser to the president and de facto head of the so-called "department of government efficiency" (Doge).

- Nick Robins-Early

Though he promised efficiency and modernization, Musk leaves behind a trail of uncertainty and reduced functionality.

The timing of Musk's departure lines up with the end of his 130-day term limit as a "special government employee" but also plays a part in an effort by the billionaire to signal a wider shift away from Washington as he faces a backlash from the public and shareholders.

Doge's debris Musk's initial pitch for Doge was to save $2tn (£1.5tn) from the budget by rooting out rampant waste and fraud, as well as to conduct an overhaul of government software that would modernize how federal agencies operate. Doge so far has claimed to cut about $140bn from the budget - although its "wall of receipts" is notorious for containing errors that overestimate its savings. Donald Trump's new tax proposals, though not part of Doge and opposed by Musk, is also expected to add $2.3tn to the deficit, nullifying any savings Doge may have achieved.

The greater impact of Doge has instead been its dismantling of government services and humanitarian aid. Doge's cuts have targeted a swathe of agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which handles weather and natural disaster forecasting, and plunged others such as the Department of Veterans Affairs into crises. Numerous smaller agencies, such as one that coordinates policy on homelessness, have been in effect shut down. Doge has brought several bureaus to their knees, with no clear plan of whether the staff Musk leaves behind will try to update or maintain their services or simply shut them off.