Page 10 - AB
P. 10

A2    u.s. news
                      Monday 28 april 2025
            As Musk gained power in Washington, his popularity has fallen,

            an AP-NORC poll finds



            By CHRIS MEGERIAN                                                                      two-thirds of adults believe  He  is  expected  to  start
            and AMELIA THOMSON-                                                                    Musk  has  held  too  much  dedicating  more  time  to
            DEVEAUX                                                                                influence  over  the  fed-   Tesla,  his  electric  auto-
            Associated Press                                                                       eral  government  during  maker  that  has  suffered
            WASHINGTON  (AP)  —  Elon                                                              the past few months — al-    plummeting revenue while
            Musk  spent  years  building                                                           though that influence may  he  was  working  for  Trump.
            cachet  as  a  business  titan                                                         be coming to an end. The  Musk told investors on a re-
            and  tech  visionary,  brush-                                                          billionaire  entrepreneur  is  cent  conference  call  that
            ing  aside  critics  and  skep-                                                        expected  to  leave  his  ad-  "now  that  the  major  work
            tics to become the richest                                                             ministration job in the com-  of establishing the Depart-
            person on the planet.                                                                  ing weeks.                   ment  of  Government  Effi-
            But as Musk gained power                                                               Musk  is  noticeably  less  ciency is done," he expects
            in  Washington  in  recent                                                             popular  than  the  overall  to spend just "a day or two
            months,  his  popularity  has                                                          effort  to  pare  back  the  per  week  on  government
            waned, according to a poll                                                             government      workforce,  matters."
            from The  Associated  Press-  Elon  Musk  flashes  his  T-shirt  that  reads  "DOGE"  to  the  media   which Trump has described  Musk,  in  his  work  for  the
            NORC Center for Public Af-   as he walks on South Lawn of the White House, in Washington,   as  bloated  and  corrupt.  administration,  has  contin-
            fairs Research.              March 9, 2025.                                            About  half  of  U.S.  adults  ued  a  political  evolution
            Just 33% of U.S. adults have                                          Associated Press  believe  the  Republican  toward the right. Although
            a  favorable  view  of  Musk,  and  overhaul  the  federal  reputation,"   said   Ernest   president has gone too far  the South African-born en-
            the    chain-saw-wielding,  government.  That  share  is  Pereira,  27,  a  Democrat   on reducing the size of the  trepreneur was never easy
            late-night-posting,   cam-   down from 41% in Decem-      who works as a lab techni-   federal  workforce,  while  to categorize ideologically,
            paign-hat-wearing  public  ber.                           cian in North Carolina. "He   roughly 3 in 10 think he is on  he  championed  the  fight
            face  of  President  Donald  "It  was  a  shame  that  he  bought into his own hype."  target  and  14%  want  him  against  climate  change
            Trump's efforts to downsize  crashed  and  burned  his  The  poll  found  that  about   to go even further.         and often supported Dem-
                                                                                                   Retiree  Susan  Wolf,  75,  of  ocratic candidates.
                                                                                                   Pennsylvania,  believes  the  Now he criticizes "the woke
                                                                                                   federal  government  is  too  mind virus" and warns of the
                                                                                                   big but Musk has "made a  collapse of Western civiliza-
                                                                                                   mess of everything."         tion  from  the  threats  of  il-
                                                                                                   "I don't trust him," she said.  legal migration and excess
                                                                                                   "I don't think he knows what  government spending.
                                                                                                   he's doing."                 Musk's  increasingly  conser-
                                                                                                   Wolf, who is not registered  vative politics are reflected
                                                                                                   with  a  political  party,  said  in  the  polling.  Only  about
                                                                                                   Musk's  private  sector  suc-  2  in  10  independents  and
                                                                                                   cess  does  not  translate  to  about  1  in  10  Democrats
                                                                                                   Washington.                  view Musk favorably, com-
                                                                                                   "He  thinks  you  run  a  gov-  pared  with  about  7  in  10
                                                                                                   ernment  like  you  run  a  Republicans.
                                                                                                   business. And you don't do  In  addition,  while  about  7
                                                                                                   that,"  she  said.  "One  is  for  in  10  independents  and
                                                                                                   the  benefit  of  the  people,  about  9  in  10  Democrats
                                                                                                   and  the  other  is  for  the  believe Musk has too much
                                                                                                   benefit of the corporation."  influence,  only  about  4  in
                                                                                                   Much  of  the  downsizing  10  Republicans  feel  that
                                                                                                   has been done through so-    way.
                                                                                                   called  the  Department  of  Mark  Collins,  67,  a  ware-
                                                                                                   Government  Efficiency,  or  house manager from Mich-
                                                                                                   DOGE,  which  was  Musk's  igan  who  has  leaned  Re-
                                                                                                   brainchild during last year's  publican  in  recent  years,
                                                                                                   campaign.  Thousands  of  said Musk "runs a nice, tight
                                                                                                   federal  employees  have  ship"  at  his  companies,
                                                                                                   been  fired  or  pushed  to  "and the government defi-
                                                                                                   quit,  contracts  have  been  nitely needs tightening up."
                                                                                                   canceled and entire agen-    "He's  cleaning  up  all  the
                                                                                                   cies have been brought to  trash," he said. "I love what
                                                                                                   a standstill.                he's doing."
                                                                                                   Musk  has  succeeded  in  Republicans are much less
                                                                                                   providing  a  dose  of  shock  likely than Democrats to be
                                                                                                   therapy  to  the  federal  worried about being affect-
                                                                                                   government,  but  he  has  ed  by  recent  cuts  to  fed-
                                                                                                   fallen  short  of  other  goals.  eral government agencies,
                                                                                                   After  talking  about  cut-  services or grants. Just 11%
                                                                                                   ting spending by $1 trillion,  said they are "extremely" or
                                                                                                   he  has  set  a  much  lower  "very" concerned that they
                                                                                                   target of $150 billion. Even  or someone they know will
                                                                                                   reaching    that   amount  be  affected,  while  about
                                                                                                   could  prove  challenging,  two-thirds  of  Democrats
                                                                                                   and  DOGE  has  regularly  and  44%  of  independents
                                                                                                   overstated its progress.     have those fears.q
   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15