Musk moves from pivotal to the edge of the White House orbit

The Oval Office was crowded, with reporters cautioned not to collide with the Resolute Desk. Standing beside them, dressed in black, was Elon Musk, billionaire ally of Donald Trump and head of his government efficiency drive.

- By David Smith WASHINGTON

“Elon is from South Africa - I don’t want to get Elon involved,” the US president told his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, during a discussion about crime against white farmers. “He actually came here on a different subject: sending rockets to Mars. He likes that better.”

Musk’s silence during the fraught hour-long meeting was a small but telling reminder of his shift in Trump’s orbit. He remains close to the president and welcome in the West Wing. He also paid a second visit to the Pentagon last week. But a relationship many forecast would end in an explosive collision of egos seems instead to be undergoing an inexorable tapering off.

Last week, the Politico website published an analysis that found a sharp drop in the number of times that Trump posted about Musk on his Truth Social platform, from an average of four times a week in February and March to zero since the start of April.

In addition, White House officials no longer fill their social media feeds with Musk-related content. Reporters seldom ask about him at the White House press briefing. Members of Congress are giving his name a wide berth.