Elon Musk recently disclosed that he has not returned to Washington, D.C. at any time following his official departure from the White House DOGE office in May. Reflecting on this period during an interview at the high-profile All-In Summit, Musk described his brief and unconventional foray into government as nothing short of a highly unusual diversion, colorfully referring to it as a “side quest.” His remark underscored the sense that his responsibilities in the capital were tangential to his central identity as an entrepreneur and innovator, even while acknowledging the significance of the role.
The All-In Summit itself, which convened numerous influential business leaders including billionaire investor Mark Cuban, was staged in Los Angeles over the course of September 7 through 9. During the event, Musk participated in a wide-ranging discussion whose recording was later published on the “All-In Podcast” YouTube channel. This provided a broad public audience an opportunity to hear his candid reflections on politics, economics, and the complex realities of federal decision-making.
When asked about the lessons he had drawn from his tenure overseeing DOGE, Musk did not mince words. He asserted that the government, in his view, suffers from systemic inefficiencies and limitations so severe that it is essentially beyond repair. By way of evidence, he pointed to the nation’s mounting fiscal burden: the U.S. national debt has reached such staggering levels that the interest payments alone now surpass the entire annual budget of the Department of Defense. With characteristic boldness, he warned that unless transformative technologies such as artificial intelligence and automation are harnessed to find solutions, the country could face severe financial peril. In Musk’s estimation, without new tools to confront the deficit, the United States is at considerable risk of insolvency.
Neither Musk nor the White House responded to follow-up requests for comment from Business Insider regarding his statements. However, his relationship with politics, particularly with the Trump administration, has been one of fascination for observers. Musk was a strong political supporter of Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign, contributing at least $277 million to Trump and a slate of Republican candidates. Following Trump’s victory, Musk accepted a position as a special government employee, tasked with directing the DOGE initiative while simultaneously maintaining his leadership roles at Tesla and SpaceX. His service lasted 130 days, concluding in May, at which point he exited government and returned full time to his businesses.
Earlier that year in January, Musk had spoken optimistically about the potential of DOGE. In conversation with political strategist Mark Penn during a livestream on the social media platform X, he claimed that DOGE had a realistic chance of reducing governmental expenditures by as much as one trillion dollars. He described the federal bureaucracy as a vast and inefficiency-ridden space, likening it to a room filled with countless targets—so many, in fact, that one could metaphorically close their eyes and still strike a bullseye when seeking opportunities for cost reduction. This frank characterization was meant to illustrate the sheer abundance of waste and redundancy embedded in federal structures.
Despite this aspirational rhetoric, it remains uncertain how much money, if any, DOGE ultimately saved the federal government during Musk’s brief leadership. Nevertheless, in April, Musk announced that the office was on track to deliver a projected reduction of nearly $150 billion in spending for the 2026 fiscal cycle. Such claims pointed to substantial ambition, though questions of concrete results linger.
Tensions between Musk and President Trump escalated in June, with their conflict spilling into the public sphere across social media. In a notable exchange, Musk denounced Trump’s signature tax legislation, deriding it in vehement terms as a bloated bill rife with unnecessary expenditures. He went further, claiming personal credit for Trump’s electoral triumph in 2024, a statement that provoked visible displeasure from the president. Musk’s scathing words were met by threats from Trump to terminate government contracts tied to Musk’s companies. The friction highlighted the fragile balance between personal loyalty, political allegiance, and business interests. Musk, in a caustic remark posted on June 5, accused Trump of “ingratitude.”
In the weeks that followed, Trump sought to adopt a more conciliatory approach. During an appearance on “The Scott Jennings Show,” the former president tempered his criticism, describing Musk in mixed terms as both extraordinarily intelligent and somewhat erratic. In Trump’s words, Musk was “80% super genius” but still carried personal flaws that accounted for the other 20%. Trump suggested that if Musk could resolve those shortcomings, his greatness would be complete. This comment embodied Trump’s shifting stance: despite earlier threats, he appeared willing to publicly acknowledge Musk’s strategic value and potential importance.
Taken as a whole, Musk’s remarks and experiences underscore both the promise and the frustrations of his unprecedented government involvement. His absence from Washington since leaving office, coupled with his biting assessments of federal inefficiencies, conveys a pronounced skepticism toward the political establishment. At the same time, his willingness to intervene in national issues reveals his enduring conviction that technological innovation must play a decisive role in shaping the future of governance, fiscal policy, and the broader trajectory of the United States.
Sourse: https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-how-long-since-washington-dc-2025-9
