Five takeaways from Trump’s White House farewell to Elon Musk

President Trump and Elon Musk appeared together one last time in the Oval Office on Friday, marking the exit of the world’s richest man from his frontline political role.

Time was up for Musk because of his status as a special government employee – a categorization that triggers few disclosure requirements but also caps the duration of service.

Musk’s time spearheading the quasi-official Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been enormously controversial. It has also hurt Musk’s business interests, particularly in relation to Tesla, which has seen falling sales.

Here are the five main takeaways from the Trump-Musk meeting.

The “goodbye” is less than total

Musk raised eyebrows in recent days when he voiced criticism of the huge budget bill that is wending its way through Congress.

Conversely, plenty of Republicans inside and outside Trump’s orbit have tired of the downsides of dealing with the fractious businessman.

But on Friday, both Trump and Musk were at pains to emphasize there was no breach in their relationship, nor was their bond dissolving.

At times, the display of closeness felt a bit unctuous, as when Musk praised Trump for his gold-heavy interior design makeover of the Oval Office. Musk said Trump had brought “majesty” to the famous room.

On a more serious and central issue, Musk insisted “this is not the end of DOGE but really the beginning.”

He added, “I’ll continue to be visiting here, and be a friend and advisor to the president.”

Trump for his part agreed that Musk was “going to be back and forth.”

The president also noted that he and others inside the administration would “remember” Musk for the legacy of his work with DOGE.

Musk and Trump are sensitive about DOGE’s savings

The actual savings achieved by DOGE are a major point of contention.

Before his work in Washington began in earnest, Musk had predicted it would be possible to shear $2 trillion from the federal budget, which totals about $6.8 trillion.

Critics cast that claim as hyperbolic – and they were proven correct.

Musk repeatedly scaled back his promised savings, ultimately settling on $160 billion. Fact-checkers have cast doubt even on that, with the BBC noting that actual itemized savings from DOGE come in at around $61 billion.

On Friday, Trump and Musk betrayed a sensitivity on the topic, arguing that much greater savings would accrete over time.

“The numbers that we’re talking about are substantial but they’re going to be very much more substantial with time,” Trump said. “The numbers could double and triple.”

Musk said, “I’m confident that over time, we’ll see a trillion dollars of savings.”

Skeptics will note the lack of an exact timescale.

A black eye and an explanation

Beyond the minutiae of DOGE’s work, the most attention-grabbing element of the Friday event was the livid bruising around Musk’s right eye.

He was duly asked about this by Brett Samuels of The Hill.

Musk’s response began with an awkward joke referencing the apparent contretemps between French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte that captured global attention after being caught on film last Sunday.

“I wasn’t anywhere near France,” Musk said.

He then clarified that the markings had come from a playful tussle with his young son, X.

He contended that he had told his son, “‘Go ahead, punch me in the face.’ And he did. Turns out even a five-year-old punching you in the face….”

Trump, moments later, said, “I didn’t notice it actually.”

Musk’s critics will of course prefer some more scandalous explanation, but there’s no evidence Musk’s version of events is inaccurate.

Allegations of drug use – and no explanation

A pall was cast over Musk’s farewell by a New York Times story on his personal life.

The Times contended that, during Musk’s time campaigning for Trump last year, “he was also using drugs far more intensely than previously known.”

The report also contended that he was consuming large amounts of ketamine, as well as using Ecstasy, Adderall and psychedelic mushrooms.

The Times noted that it was “unclear” if Musk’s drug use had continued during his time in the White House but also contended his family life had “grown increasingly tumultuous” in part because of the number of children he has fathered with different women.

A reporter in the Oval Office has only begun raising the issue of the Times report when Musk cut him off.

The businessman instead inveighed against the news organization’s coverage of allegations about collusion between Trump and Russia —  or “their lies about the RussiaGate hoax,” as Musk put it.

He then brusquely said, “Let’s move on, ok, next question.”

Trump segues into foreign policy

There was some semblance of news from the Oval Office meeting beyond the dynamics between Trump and Musk.

Trump was asked about several foreign policy issues.

Amid speculation about whether there might be a ceasefire soon in Gaza, Trump contended some kind of “agreement” was “very close.” He added, “We’ll let you know about it during the day or maybe tomorrow.”

Unpromted, he continued, “I think we have a chance of making a deal with Iran also. They don’t want to be blown up. They would rather make a deal.”

In relation to the Ukraine-Russia war, Trump interrupted a reporter who referenced the administration’s dealings with “a very stubborn Vladimir Putin.”

“And Zelensky,” Trump interjected.

In regards to Putin and his intensifying bombings of Ukrainian cities, Trump complained about “rockets being shot into cities like Kyiv during a negotiation that I felt was maybe very close to ending. We were going to solve a problem.”

Even as he leveled criticisms of Moscow, however, Trump still held out the possibility of an end to the war,

“I don’t like being surprised so I’m very disappointed in that way. That being said, I’d like to see it end,” he said.