Americans Disapproval of Musk's DOGE Skyrocket As His Involvement in The Trump Admin Dwindles: Poll

Americans are growing increasingly critical of Elon Musk's role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), showing signs of skepticism that it is actually cutting down government spending, a new poll shows. The trend comes as the White House and the billionaire assure his time in the federal government is set to be reduced drastically.

The views were revealed by a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll conducted between April 18 and 22 among 2,464 U.S. adults. The sample was drawn through the Ipsos KnowledgePanel, an ongoing panel of U.S. households recruited by mail using random sampling methods. Overall results have a margin of error of plus or minus two points.

According to the survey, 35% of Americans approve of the way Musk is handling his job in the Trump administration, while 57% disapprove. Musk, the richest man in the world, has seen consistent negative ratings since Trump moved back to the White House. The figure has increased from February, when his negative ratings stood at 49%. Yet, his approval has shifted little from 34% two months ago, The Washington Post added.

The study showed that disapproval of Musk is up among almost all demographic groups surveyed in the poll, including by double-digits among adults under 30 (from 51% to 62%), independents who do not lean toward either party (from 41% to 57%) and those without college degrees (from 44% to 54%).

But Musk's personal approval ratings are not the only ones facing scrutiny by Americans. In fact, respondents also showed skepticism over DOGE's mission: cutting government waste.

While 43% of Americans say the federal government has decreased under Trump, a majority say waste has either stayed the same (31%) or increased (25%). Asked about fraud, the public split into approximate thirds: 34% say it has increased under Trump, 32% say it has decreased and 34% say it has stayed the same.

The poll also found that 77% of Americans opposed reducing federal funding for medical research, along with 62% who opposed freezing foreign aid that provides food and health services for people in poor countries. On a broader level, almost 6 in 10 adults say they are concerned that Trump will do too much to reduce the size and role of government in U.S. society.

DOGE says it has saved $160 billion through its push to root out wasteful or fraudulent government spending. The initiative's website says it is focusing on cancelling contracts, grants and leases put in place by previous administrations, as well as tackling fraud and reducing the government workforce.

Last week, Musk said he would spend less time on DOGE and focus on Tesla, as the 130-day clock on his appointment as a "special government employee" runs down. "The DOGE team has made a lot of progress in addressing waste and fraud," he said.

At the same time, Trump, who has grown to have an intimate relationship with Musk, told TIME magazine last week that DOGE is a "very big success." "We found hundreds of billions of dollars of waste, fraud, and abuse," he said. "It's a scam. It's illegal, in my opinion, so much of the stuff that we found, but I think DOGE has been a big success from that standpoint."