- Elon Musk said running his businesses while working closely with the White House hasn’t been easy.
- Tesla’s stock declined 15% on Monday, with some investors concerned.
- Musk said he wants to make the goverment “more efficient” and “eliminate waste and fraud.”
Elon Musk said Monday running his businesses, like Tesla and SpaceX, while also taking on a major government overhaul effort has not been easy.
During an interview with Fox Business that aired Monday, Musk was asked by host Larry Kudlow how he’s running his other businesses while also working closely with the Trump White House.
“With great difficulty,” Musk said, followed by a long pause and a sigh but not much more explanation.
“I’m just here trying to make government more efficient, eliminate waste and fraud, and so far we’re making good progress, actually,” Musk added.
His comment came as Tesla stock declined 15% on Monday, its largest single-day drop since 2020. The stock is down 55% from a high in December, causing concern among investors.
Musk is working closely with the DOGE office, which has pushed spending cuts and mass firings at various government agencies. President Donald Trump has credited Musk with leading the office, though other White House officials have denied it.
Musk said in the Fox interview his team is now made up of more than 100 people and that he expects it to reach 200. He also said they have taken action at virtually every government agency when asked by Kudlow if they were now working in all departments.
“We’re trying to make the government more efficient across the board, so yeah,” Musk said.
When asked about the recent attacks on Tesla facilities, including gun shots fired at a dealership in Oregon and other acts of vandalism, Musk said it has been “tough” but that he thinks “we’re doing the right thing here.”
Musk has been known for investing long hours at his companies, but some investors are worried he’s no longer giving Tesla enough of this focus.
“We think shareholders have legitimate concerns about Elon Musk being spread too thin,” Garrett Nelson, a senior equity analyst at CFRA Research, told Business Insider’s Matthew Fox, “and it’s become clear he’s now spending more time on DOGE than anything else.”
