Elon Musk leaving Trump administration after criticising president's 'big beautiful bill'
Washington (AP): Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top advisor to US President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce and overhaul the federal bureaucracy.
The billionaire entrepreneur posted Wednesday about his decision on X, his social media website.
“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” he wrote.
“The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”
A White House official, who requested anonymity to talk about the change, confirmed that Musk was leaving.
Musk's departure comes one day after he criticised the centrepiece of Trump's legislative agenda, saying he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his “big beautiful bill".
The legislation includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration enforcement.
While speaking to CBS, Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful. But I don't know if it could be both,” Musk said.
His CBS interview came out Tuesday night.
Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, defended his agenda by talking about the delicate politics involved with negotiating the legislation.
“I'm not happy about certain aspects of it, but I'm thrilled by other aspects of it,” he said.
Trump also suggested that more changes could be made.
“We're going to see what happens. It's got a way to go," he said.
Republicans recently pushed the measure through the House and are debating it in the Senate.
Musk's concerns are shared by some Republican lawmakers.
“I sympathise with Elon being discouraged,” said Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson.
Speaking at a Milwaukee Press Club event on Wednesday, Johnson added that he was “pretty confident” there was enough opposition “to slow this process down until the president, our leadership, gets serious” about reducing spending. He said there was no amount of pressure Trump could put on him to change his position.
Speaker Mike Johnson has asked senators to make as few changes to the legislation as possible, saying that House Republicans reached a “very delicate balance” that could be upended with major changes.
The narrowly-divided House will have to vote again on final passage once the Senate alters the bill.
On Wednesday, Johnson thanked Musk for his work and promised to pursue more spending cuts in the future, saying “the House is eager and ready to act on DOGE's findings".
The White House is sending some proposed rescissions, a mechanism used to cancel previously authorised spending, to Capitol Hill to solidify some of DOGE's cuts.
A spokesperson for the Office of Management and Budget said the package will include USD 1.1 billion from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, and USD 8.3 billion in foreign assistance.
Musk's criticism come as he steps back from his government work, rededicating himself to companies like the electric automaker Tesla and rocket manufacturer SpaceX.
He also said he'll reduce his political spending, because “I think I've done enough".
At times, he seemed chastened by his experience of working in the government. Although he hoped that DOGE would generate USD 1 trillion in spending cuts, he's fallen far short of that target.
“The federal bureaucracy situation is much worse than I realised,” he told The Washington Post.
“I thought there were problems, but it sure is an uphill battle trying to improve things in DC, to say the least.”
Musk had previously been energised by the opportunity to reshape Washington. He wore campaign hats in the White House, held his own campaign rallies, and talked about excessive spending as an existential crisis.
He often tended to be effusive in his praise of Trump.
“The more I've gotten to know President Trump, the more I like the guy. Frankly, I love him," Musk said in February.
Trump repaid the favour, describing Musk as “a truly great American".
When Tesla faced declining sales, he turned the White House driveway into a makeshift showroom to illustrate his support.
It's unclear what, if any, impact Musk's comments about the bill would have on the legislative debate.
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SC flags 'trust deficit', orders deployment of judicial officers in Bengal's SIR exercise
New Delhi (PTI): Dismayed over ongoing tussle between the West Bengal government and the Election Commission, the Supreme Court on Friday issued an "extraordinary" direction to deploy serving and former district judges to assist the poll panel in the controversy-ridden special intensive revision of electoral rolls in the state.
Ruing the "unfortunate blame game" and the "trust deficit" between the EC and the "democratically elected" TMC government, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi passed a slew of fresh directions to ensure completion of the special intensive revision (SIR) process.
The bench ordered deputation of judicial officers for adjudication of claims and objections of the persons, who are put under the logical discrepancy lists and facing removal of their names from the electoral rolls.
Logical discrepancies in progeny linking with the 2002 voter list include instances of a mismatch in the parent's name and the age difference between a voter and their parent being less than 15 years or more than 50 years.
The top court asked Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Sujoy Paul to spare some judicial officers and find former judges to assist in the SIR work as it took serious note of the state government not sparing enough grade 'A'0 officers for the revision exercise.
Chief Justice Paul has been asked to convene a meeting on Saturday and the same will be attended by Chief Secretary, DGP, official from the EC, Advocate General of the state. Additional Solicitor General of the Union and the Registrar General of the high court on the issue of finalising modalities of deputing judicial officers in SIR process.
"In order to ensure fairness in the adjudication of the genuineness of the documents and consequential inclusion/exclusion in voters list, and as agreed to by both sides, we are left with hardly any other option but to request the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court to spare serving judicial officers along with some former judicial officers in the rank of Additional District Judge and District Judges who can then be requested to revisit/dispose of the pending claims under the category of 'logical discrepancy'," the bench ordered.
Disregarding the vehement objections of the state government, the top court permitted the EC to publish a final list of voters in the state by February 28, the deadline fixed earlier. However, it also permitted the election commission to come out with supplementary lists later.
It noted that no prejudice will be caused to anyone if supplementary voter lists are issued after February 28 as names of electors can be included till the last date of filing of nomination papers for the elections.
Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, alleged that the orders passed by the electoral roll officers are now being scrutinised by a "new species of officers" called the 'special roll officers'.
"The 'special roll officers' cannot trump EROs. How can they on a wholesale basis reject what ERO has done?" Divan asked.
The election commission refuted that claim and said that the SROs are there since inception. The bench agreed with the submissions of the poll panel.
The bench further said that if there is non-cooperation then the court will deploy judicial officers or ask the EC to deploy the officials from other states.
During the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the state government, said that there might be a law and order problem, if the poll panel is permitted to publish the final voter list by February 28.
In a bid to balance equity, the top court said such judicial officers/former judicial officers, while adjudicating the claims and objections, shall be assisted by poll panel's micro-observers and also by the officers of the state government.
"The circumstances being extraordinary, the entrustment of work to judicial officers and former judicial officers is also extraordinary," the bench said.
Senior advocate DS Naidu, appearing for the EC raised the issue of non-cooperation and the law and order enforcement alleging that the documents have been torn apart from miscreants and yet hardly any action has been taken.
He produced the statements made by different political functionaries against the poll officials and said no FIRs were registered against anyone.
CJI Kant, who perused the statements said, "Unfortunately, during the election such irresponsible statements are being made. If no action is taken, the DGP will face the consequences."
The bench then directed district collectors and SPs of the state to provide logistical support and security to the judicial officers deputed for the ongoing SIR work while making it clear that orders passed by judicial officers will be deemed as orders of court.
It said the collector and SPs will be considered under deemed deputation for the purpose of ensuring compliance of directions that may be issued from time to time by the court.
It directed the DGP to file an affidavit on the steps taken on complaints regarding threats to officers involved in the SIR process.
The bench directed the Calcutta High Court chief justice to evolve some alternate interim arrangement for shifting of matters requiring urgent relief to other courts for ten days.
On February 9, the top court made it clear to the states that it will not allow anyone to create any impediment in completion of the SIR and directed the WB DGP to file an affidavit on the EC allegation of burning of its notices by miscreants.
