Musk’s political baggage: Polls present Individuals bitter on Trump’s most seen advisor
There isn’t any denying that billionaire Elon Musk has been essentially the most seen member of President Donald Trump’s administration throughout Trump’s first ten weeks again within the White Home. However with familiarity can come contempt, as latest polling reveals the DOGE level man underwater with approval rankings.
Musk, the world’s richest individual and the chief government of Tesla and SpaceX, has grabbed outsized consideration as he is steered DOGE, the acronym for Trump’s not too long ago created Division of Authorities Effectivity, which has swept by federal companies, rooting out what the White Home argues was billions in wasteful federal spending.
The unit has additionally taken a meat cleaver to the federal workforce, leading to an enormous exodus of workers. The controversial strikes by Musk and DOGE have triggered a slew of lawsuits in response.
However it’s changing into more and more clear {that a} majority of Individuals are removed from pleased with Musk’s strikes. And two new nationwide public opinion polls launched this week provide additional proof.
President Donald Trump listens as White Home Senior Advisor, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, speaks subsequent to a Tesla Cyber Truck and a Mannequin S on the South Garden of the White Home on March 11, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Pictures)
In response to a Reuters/Ipsos ballot performed March 31-April 2, Musk’s favorable score stands at 39% amongst Individuals, with 57% viewing him in an unfavorable gentle.
And solely 36% of respondents mentioned the Trump administration was doing a reliable job in lowering the variety of federal workers. Even fewer — 31% — supplied that the Trump administration was competently downsizing the federal authorities with out affecting very important companies.
In response to a Marquette Legislation College nationwide survey, 41% approve of the job Musk is doing at DOGE, with 58% giving him a thumbs down.
And Musk’s favorable score was in adverse territory — on the 38% to 60% — within the ballot, which was performed March 17 by 24.
AMERICANS WANT SMALLER GOVERNMENT BUT NEW POLLS SHOWS WHETHER THEY LIKE HOW MUSK IS GOING ABOUT IT
A slew of latest and up to date public opinion polls point out that Elon Musk’s favorable rankings and approval rankings are hovering in adverse territory. Musk, the world’s richest individual and President Donald Trump’s prime donor in final 12 months’s election, is presently serving as a prime White Home adviser and steering DOGE. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP through Getty Pictures)
The 2 surveys are the newest to point Musk’s ballot numbers deeply underwater.
A majority — 54% — questioned in a Quinnipiac College survey performed early final month mentioned that Musk and DOGE are hurting the nation, with simply 4 in ten saying their efforts are serving to the nation.
And in response to a Fox Information nationwide ballot performed in mid-March, Musk’s approval of his work at DOGE was in adverse territory, at 40% approval and 58% disapproval.
Whereas almost six in 10 questioned within the Fox Information ballot felt that an important deal or virtually all of presidency spending is wasteful and inefficient, 51% opposed considerably shrinking the variety of authorities workers, 56% disapproved of the job the Trump administration is doing figuring out and lowering wasteful spending, and one other 65% nervous that not sufficient thought and planning has gone into the cuts.
Whereas Trump continues to reward Musk’s efforts with DOGE, some Republicans are beginning to voice issues about Musk’s political liabilities.
Democrats have more and more spotlighted and focused Musk of their political assaults. And that was earlier than he inserted himself front-and-center on this week’s high-profile and traditionally costly state supreme courtroom election in Wisconsin.
ELON MUSK HANDS OUT MILLION-DOLLAR CHECKS AMID ‘SUPER IMPORTANT’ WISCONSIN JUDICIAL RACE
Billionaire businessman Elon Musk arrives for a city corridor sporting a cheesehead hat on the KI Conference Heart on March 30, 2025, in Inexperienced Bay, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Pictures)
With an enormous infusion of cash from Democrat- and Republican-aligned teams from outdoors Wisconsin, which turned the race into the costliest judicial election within the nation’s historical past, the competition partially reworked right into a referendum on Trump’s sweeping and controversial strikes through the opening months of his second tour of obligation within the White Home, and on Musk’s efforts.
Dane County Circuit Courtroom Choose Susan Crawford, the liberal-leaning candidate, ended up defeating Brad Schimel, the conservative-leaning Trump-backed candidate, a former state legal professional common who presently serves as a state circuit courtroom choose in Waukesha County, by roughly ten factors.
The massive margin was not anticipated, in a race that was anticipated to be shut, in a state that final November had an especially tight margin within the presidential race.
Musk, who final 12 months was Trump’s prime donor, dished out roughly $20 million within the Wisconsin race by aligned teams in help of Schimel.
DONALD TRUMP, FACING TERRIBLE COVERAGE, SOFTENS TONE AND TACTICS FOR ELON MUSK’S DOGE CRUSADE
Elon Musk, proper, sparked controversy as he introduced million-dollar checks to 2 attendees throughout a city corridor forward of the Wisconsin Supreme Courtroom election, in Inexperienced Bay, Wisconsin, on Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Jamie Kelter Davis/Bloomberg through Getty Pictures)
In a controversial transfer, Musk handed out $1 million checks at a rally in Inexperienced Bay on Sunday night to 2 Wisconsin voters who had already forged ballots within the contest and had signed a petition to cease “activist judges.”
Musk’s lighting rod efforts in Wisconsin are being blamed for partially contributing to the 10-point shellacking Schimel suffered.
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The White Home confirmed to Fox Information on Wednesday that Musk will exit his position with DOGE on schedule later this spring, as soon as his efforts are full.
The White Home, pushing again towards reporting by Politico that Trump had instructed his inside circle and cupboard members that Musk could be “stepping again within the coming weeks from his present position,” mentioned that Musk had lengthy been anticipated to step again from DOGE when his 130 days as a “particular authorities worker” run out in Could.
