Musk's Farewell With a Golden Key: 'This Is Not the End of DOGE but Really the Beginning' (May 30, 2025)

Elon Musk’s last day in the Oval Office as a special government employee ended with a golden key and a promise. “Well, let me say perhaps a few words, that this is not the end of DOGE but really the beginning,” Musk said beside President Donald Trump on May 30, 2025, according to the transcript published by the American Presidency Project [1].

“The DOGE team will only grow stronger over time. The DOGE influence will only grow stronger. It’s—I’d liken it to sort of Buddhism. It’s like a way of life,” Musk said [1].

The video above shows Trump and Musk in the Oval Office on May 30, 2025. Quotes are from the American Presidency Project and GovInfo [1][2].

”One of the Greatest Business Leaders”

“Well, thank you very much, everybody, for being here. And it’s an honor to be with Elon, who’s my friend, and he’s done a fantastic job. He didn’t need this. He didn’t need it. And we find out Government is a little nasty on occasion,” Trump said. “Yes, at times,” Musk answered [1].

Trump went on with praise. “And today it’s about a man named Elon. And he’s one of the greatest business leaders and innovators the world has ever produced. He stepped forward to put his very great talents into the service of our Nation, and we appreciate it,” he said [1].

“And I just want to say that Elon has worked tirelessly, helping lead the most sweeping and consequential Government reform program in generations,” Trump said [1].

“With the ‘Department of Government Efficiency,’ Elon has delivered a colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington,” he said [1].

“And he had to go through the slings and the arrows, which is a shame, because he’s an incredible patriot,” Trump said [1].

”You Can See the Lock”

Then Trump gave him a gift. “I gave him a little special something,” Trump said, presenting Musk with a golden key “as a presentation from our country.” [1]

“You can see the lock,” Musk joked, as the room laughed. “The lock on this is amazing.” [1]

“Over $160 Billion”

Musk gave his numbers. “The calculations of the DOGE team thus far, in terms of an FY 25 to FY 26 delta, are over $160 billion, and that’s climbing. We expect that will probably—that number will probably go over $200 billion soon,” he said [1].

“So it is permeating throughout the government, and I’m confident that, over time, we will see a trillion dollars of savings,” Musk said [1].

“More than 75,000 bureaucrats have voluntarily left their taxpayer-funded jobs,” Trump said. “Countless wasteful and unnecessary contracts have been terminated.” [1]

Musk said he would stay close. “So I look forward to continuing to be a friend and adviser to the President, continuing to support the DOGE team,” he said [1].

”In Burma”

Trump read from DOGE’s list. “Just as an example, DOGE canceled $101 million for DEI contracts at the Department of Education—$101 million,” he said [1].

He added “$59 million for illegal alien hotel rooms in New York City” and “$45 million for diversity, equity, and inclusion scholarships in Burma. In Burma. Does anyone know about Burma?” [1]

“Go Ahead. Punch Me in the Face.”

A reporter asked about a bruise under Musk’s eye. “Well, it wasn’t—I wasn’t anywhere near France,” Musk joked, as the room laughed [1].

“So yes, no, I was just horsing around with little X, and I said, ‘Go ahead. Punch me in the face.’ And he did,” Musk said of his young son [1].

“That was X that did that?” Trump asked, to laughter. “If you knew X, he could do it.” [1]

“The Greatest Trade School System”

Trump said money saved at places like Harvard should go to trade schools. “And I’d like to see trade schools set up, because you could take $5 billion, plus hundreds of billions more, which is what’s spent,” he said, “and you could have the greatest trade school system anywhere in the world.” [1]

“Our country has given $5 billion plus to Harvard over a short period of time. Nobody knew that,” Trump said [1].

“And that’s what we need to build his rockets and robots and things that he’s doing and to build lots of other things,” Trump said [1].

Musk also admired the Oval Office. “The Oval Office has—had—you know, finally has the majesty that it deserves, thanks to the President,” he said [1].

By the Numbers

134 days: Musk’s time as a special government employee, per Musk [1].
Over $160 billion: DOGE’s savings so far, per Musk [1].
75,000+: federal workers who voluntarily left their jobs, per Trump [1].
$1 trillion: the waste and fraud Musk said DOGE would eventually cut [1].

What Happened Next

Congress made some of the cuts law. On July 24, 2025, Trump signed the Rescissions Act of 2025, which rescinded budget authority he had proposed cutting in his June 3, 2025, special message to Congress [2].

Among its cuts: “Amounts made available for ‘Corporation for Public Broadcasting’ for fiscal year 2026” and for fiscal 2027 “are rescinded,” along with $15 million for the U.S. Institute of Peace [2].

For Musk at Trump’s first Cabinet meeting, see HYGO News’ page on Feb. 26, 2025. For DOGE’s roots in Bill Clinton’s 1993 effort to reinvent government, see the page on Clinton and DOGE.