The vast and opaque power of Elon Musk is only growing as he seeks new targets for his federal government shredding machine.
The head of President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency is closing in on his latest victim—an independent government agency set up to shield Americans from the Wall Street excesses that caused the Great Recession.
Employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau were abruptly told Sunday afternoon that the watchdog’s Washington, DC, headquarters will be closed this week and they should work remotely, a day after Trump’s budget chief, Russell Vought, took over as acting director and told staff to stop fighting financial abuse.
“CFPB RIP,” Musk wrote on X on Friday.
The agency, which has long been in GOP sights, seems to be following a similar path to doom as the US Agency for International Development, which has saved millions of lives around the world and promoted democracy for decades, but that Musk has eviscerated. On Sunday, Trump called USAID “crazy” and “a big scam.”
But the role of Musk, with his unelected power, is unprecedented. The richest man in the world is firing or suspending government workers, destroying US soft global power, and accessing data and private information about potentially millions of Americans—all with zero accountability.
Multiple courts have now stepped in to temporarily halt Trump and Musk’s plans. But everything is trending toward one of the most significant showdowns over the scope of presidential power in modern history, which is destined for a Supreme Court whose conservative majority has an expansive view of executive authority.
Plenty of people have predicted that Musk and Trump are headed for a breakup given their volatile personalities and need to be the alpha dog in every room. But Trump is showing no public sign of tiring of the Tesla pioneer, who is acting as the lead agent in the president’s revenge and disruption agenda. The president even shrugged off a Time Magazine cover that showed Musk behind the Oval Office desk.
“I’ve had a great help with Elon Musk, who’s been terrific,” Trump said in a Super Bowl interview that aired on Fox on Sunday. As to whether he trusted Musk, Trump replied: “Trust Elon? Oh, he’s not gaining anything. In fact, I wonder how he can devote the time to it. He’s so into it.”
Their alliance might be more enduring than many expect.
In many ways, Trump and Musk have complementary goals. Each has shown in their business careers that they abhor rules and regulations that constrain their actions. The political activity of the president and the tech visionary also shows disdain for checks and balances. Musk has recently been agitating on behalf of far-right parties in Europe, for example, mirroring Trump’s contempt for the will of voters in 2020.
And ahead of midterm elections in 2026, Republicans have every incentive to keep on the good side of the X owner, who threw millions of dollars into electing Trump and fellow Republicans last year.
