Elon Musk and DOGE seem to be here to stay.

On April 3, United States President Donald Trump announced that Elon Musk would be leaving the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as late as May 30, per government policy toward special government employees (SGEs). The policy was introduced by Congress in 1962, and it allows government agencies to hire temporary employees who have expertise in areas outside of what is covered by federal workers. 

Other than Musk, some prominent examples of SGEs who served in the U.S Government include Huma Abedin, who was an aide to Hillary Clinton during her time as secretary state and who eventually became the head chairwoman of her election campaign, and Scott Atlas, who was hired during the first Trump administration to be the head of the Coronavirus Task Force at the onset of the Pandemic. 

According to the U.S. Department of the Interior, a SGE is defined as “an officer or employee in the executive branch of the Federal Government who is appointed to perform important but limited services to the Government, with or without compensation, for a period not to exceed 130 days during any period of 365 consecutive days.” 

If Musk and Trump were to adhere to the policy, Musk’s term as a SGE would end on May 30, marking 130 days since the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20.

It seems Trump has no intention of changing the policy and is willing to let Elon Musk leave office. 

“Elon is fantastic. He’s a patriot,” Trump said in an interview with the Associated Press when asked about the approaching end of Musk’s term. “But there will be a point at which time Elon will have to leave, he’s got a number of companies to run.” 

The sitting U.S. president also specified that he wants Elon Musk “to stay as long as possible,” and when he leaves, “DOGE will remain active,” through its secretaries. 

There has been some speculation that the relationship between Trump and Musk was deteriorating, as Trump has a history of angrily dismissing his top advisors, but there does not seem to be any tension between the two. As of now, though Musk’s spree as the head of DOGE will come to a close, there is no end in sight for the alliance between the South African billionaire and Trump.

Article by Daniel Harms