Elon Musk to Exit Doge? The Tesla CEO's First Reaction as Rumours Go Viral

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has responded to rumors about him stepping down from his position at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The rumours,  initially reported by Politico, claimed that President Donald Trump had told his inner circle that Musk would soon leave the government role and return to his business ventures.

Musk quickly dismissed the claims by retweeting a White House statement calling the report "garbage," adding his own response “fake news.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also rejected the rumours, emphasizing that both Trump and Musk had previously stated that Musk would only depart from the government role once his work there was completed.

The rumours started after Politico claimed that Trump told his Cabinet that Musk would soon step down. The report said that Trump and Musk decided recently that Musk would focus on his business again. This came at a time when Tesla's stock price dropped by 2% in early trading on Wednesday.

Earlier this week, Trump praised Musk, saying he had been "amazing" in his role but also had a big company to run. Trump said, "I’d keep him as long as I could keep him."

Read Also: Trump Tells Cabinet Members Musk Will Be Stepping Back From DOGE Soon

In a March 10 interview with Fox Business, Musk said he planned to stay in the government role for at least another year.

As head of DOGE, Musk has been working on cutting government spending, which includes reducing budgets and firing staff. Despite the rumours, Musk says he's staying for now.