Fox News’ Jessica Tarlov Offers Olive Branch to Elon Musk After His Resignation from DOGE Role
In a moment that stunned viewers of Fox News’ The Five, co-host Jessica Tarlov extended what she called a “peace offering” to Elon Musk after the tech billionaire announced his resignation from his position at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a role he held under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Tarlov took the opportunity to criticize the Democrats' latest economic overreach — the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill” — which Musk has openly denounced for its reckless fiscal implications.
“And what the Democrats are arguing and what I think you couldn’t deny is that it’s reckless at this moment to ram through trillions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy when you haven’t cut any of the spending. Which is why Ron Johnson right now is a no. Rand Paul is a no. And they don’t have the numbers for this,” Tarlov said on-air.
She pointed out that while Democrats may not win back Musk’s support, his public disappointment over the reconciliation package — and Tesla’s warnings about the potential energy crisis it could spark — should be a wake-up call.
“And I’m not saying that the Democrats are going to get Elon Musk back. Right. But he’s so clearly disappointed talking about the reconciliation bill and the work that he’s done. And also Tesla is out there now tweeting saying you can’t do these cuts that get rid of the energy tax incentives because we’re gonna, the grid is going to be smashed as a result of it, and we’re going to lose our energy independence,” she continued.
Tarlov then offered a symbolic gesture, referencing Musk’s brief guest appearance on the show: “So I’m campaigning for you, Elon. We only talked for a little while when you were on the show, but we’ll take you back and we could DOGE this the right way together.”
Musk’s resignation — announced Wednesday evening — brings an end to his bold, though embattled, mission to trim the bloated federal bureaucracy. Appointed by President Trump as a Special Government Employee, Musk led DOGE with an ambitious mandate to cut trillions in wasteful spending.
According to the Associated Press, his tenure was marked by sweeping agency shake-ups and fierce internal resistance. Though he initially set out to slash $2 trillion in government expenditures, bureaucratic inertia forced him to scale back his goal to just $150 billion.
Musk reportedly faced clashes with entrenched officials who obstructed his attempts to streamline government operations. Despite bipartisan criticism, he maintained that efficiency and accountability were the ultimate goals — and ones still worth fighting for.
True to form, Musk announced his departure directly to the public via X, signaling his return to the private sector and renewed focus on Tesla and SpaceX.
“As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,” Musk wrote. “The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.”
Musk’s exit comes amid heated debate over the controversial spending legislation pushed by Democrats. While the bill combines selective tax breaks and immigration enforcement with ballooning expenditures, Musk warned it will only deepen the national deficit and erase the progress DOGE has made.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk quipped. “But I don’t know if it could be both.”
President Trump also addressed the bill, acknowledging concerns while maintaining that certain provisions had merit.
“I’m not happy about certain aspects of it, but I’m thrilled by other aspects of it,” the President said, signaling that amendments to the legislation remain on the table.