Musk officially bids farewell to DOGE, stating he will continue to serve as a government advisor, while Trump holds a "farewell party": Most DOGE employees will stay

After leading the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) for four months, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has faced criticism and controversy from the United States to around the world, as well as violent attacks on his companies. However, at least on the surface, his close relationship with President Donald Trump has not been significantly affected.

Trump specifically held a "farewell party" for Musk's departure from DOGE, stating that Musk would not really leave. Musk said he would continue to serve as a government advisor and is always willing to help.

Trump: Promoting the Permanent Reduction of DOGE Spending, Musk Will "Come and Go"

On Friday, May 30, Eastern Time, Trump held a press conference at the White House to celebrate Musk's departure from DOGE and the end of his four-month "civil servant" career.

According to CCTV News, at the press conference, Trump thanked Musk for his contributions during his time as a "special government employee." He stated that the government would work to make the DOGE spending reduction policy permanent.

CCTV mentioned that Trump praised the achievements made under Musk's leadership at DOGE, noting that DOGE had hired outstanding talents in the field of computer science. He also said that many DOGE employees would continue to stay, and "almost all" of Musk's employees would remain.

Trump presented Musk with a golden key as a memento and stated:

"Elon (Musk) will not actually leave. He will come and go."

This statement aligns with Trump's previous remarks. On Thursday, he posted on social media that May 30 would be Musk's last day working for DOGE, "but not really (the last day), because he will always be with us, helping us along the way." He continued to praise Musk, saying, "Elon is amazing!"

Media commentary suggested that this "farewell party" effectively refuted recent reports about Musk being "out of favor." Those reports indicated that Musk's cold reception in Washington partly stemmed from his criticism of tariffs and taxes, which are hallmark policies of the Trump administration.

Wall Street Journal previously mentioned that Musk publicly criticized "tariff hawk" Navarro in April, calling for free trade and even zero tariffs between Europe and the U.S. Recently, he also stated in an interview that he was "very disappointed" with the Trump administration's large-scale tax cuts and spending proposals, saying, "It does not reduce the budget deficit but increases it, which undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing."

Musk Says This Is Not the End of DOGE, But the Beginning

According to CCTV, Musk stated that over time, the DOGE team would only become stronger. Even after leaving DOGE, he would continue to provide advice to Trump. He will continue to visit DOGE as Trump's friend and advisor Elon Musk said:

"I hope to continue to be a friend and advisor to the president, and I hope that if the president wants me to do anything, I will serve the president wholeheartedly."

Interestingly, Musk announced at the press conference wearing a black T-shirt printed with "Dogefather":

"This is not the end of DOGE, but the beginning."

When he said this, one of his eyes was still fixed on an obvious dark circle, looking a bit reluctant to leave DOGE right now.

Musk explained to reporters on site that the dark circle was caused by his 5-year-old son hitting him. "I said, come on, hit my face, and he did. At the time, I felt nothing, but I guess it should leave a bruise."

From the data, Musk should indeed be dissatisfied with DOGE's current performance.

According to CCTV, on January 20 this year, the day Trump was inaugurated, he signed an executive order to establish DOGE aimed at cutting government spending, led by Musk. Musk served in DOGE for a total of 130 days.

CCTV mentioned that the DOGE official website shows that as of April 20, the committee has saved approximately $160 billion for the U.S. federal government, but this is less than one-fifth of Musk's previously announced goal of cutting $1 trillion by the end of May. Although large-scale layoffs, agency shutdowns, contract reductions, and public service cutbacks have been implemented, government spending during this administration has still increased compared to the same period last year.

However, Wall Street investors should be eager for Musk to quickly redirect his focus back to companies like Tesla. Since the beginning of this year, due to Musk's work in DOGE and his frequent political statements, Tesla's brand image has also been affected. As of Friday's close, despite a 22.8% surge in May, Tesla's stock price has still fallen by 14.2% this year.

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index shows that due to the significant drop in Tesla stock, which is a major source of his personal wealth, Musk's personal fortune has shrunk by about $45 billion this year.

Tesla's "iron fan" and long-term bull, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, wrote in a report that although Musk promised to continue as a government advisor on Friday, his political career is "basically over" after this year's "political experiment" has clearly harmed Tesla's brand image and has developed out of control