A coalition of 77 US House Democrats has formally called on President Donald Trump to remove Elon Musk from his special government role by May 30, citing a federal limit on how long such employees can serve, Axios reported Thursday.
The move marks the start of a wider campaign by Democrats to force Musk out of his leadership position at the unofficial Department of Governmental Efficiency-a controversial team to shrink the government-alleging that he has already exceeded the 130-day legal limit for special government employees.
“We demand an immediate public statement from your administration making clear that Musk will resign and surrender all decision making authority, as required by law, by May 30th,” the Democrats wrote in a letter addressed to Trump.
Led by Congressional Progressive Caucus chair Rep. Greg Casar, the letter also warned that Musk cannot return to government service for a year unless he divests from all private holdings, including Tesla and SpaceX.
Musk has attracted criticism for allegedly pushing through changes in government that would benefit his businesses or even win them lucrative government contracts.
Musk and his team have also drawn fire for other controversial actions, from unilaterally trying to shut down government agencies-a power given to Congress under the Constitution-to giving unauthorized Musk employees full access to personal information on taxpayers, to making debunked claims of savings from cutting proven health programs for both the US and other countries.
In an interview with Axios, Casar said the pressure campaign for Musk’s resignation is only beginning.
“We’re making it very clear that the public pressure is only going to ramp up on Republicans between here and May 30,” he said.
“We have legal tools at our disposal, political tools at our disposal,” Casar added, emphasizing the “full force of public pressure.”
The White House has yet to respond publicly, though sources close to the administration suggest they may rely on a 2024 Office of Government Ethics memo-issued during the Biden presidency-which claimed unpaid travel days don’t count toward the 130-day limit.
Still, Democrats argue Musk’s continued presence in a key policy role violates ethics laws-and potentially more.
Many lawmakers say the Trump administration has already shown a pattern of sidestepping both federal statutes and constitutional norms.