Poll shows Musk’s clout in Washington has come at the cost of his popularity

Elon Musk's popularity wanes as he gains power in Washington, facing criticism for his influence over the federal government.

Elon Musk spent years building cachet as a business titan and tech visionary, brushing aside critics and sceptics to become the richest person on the planet.

But as Mr. Musk gained power in Washington in recent months, his popularity has waned, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Just 33% of U.S. adults have a favourable view of Mr. Musk, the chain-saw-wielding, late-night-posting, campaign-hat-wearing public face of President Donald Trump’s efforts to downsize and overhaul the federal government. That share is down from 41% in December.

“It was a shame that he crashed and burned his reputation,” said Ernest Pereira, 27, a Democrat who works as a lab technician in North Carolina. “He bought into his own hype.”

The poll found that about two-thirds of adults believe Mr. Musk has held too much influence over the federal government during the past few months, although that influence may be coming to an end. The billionaire entrepreneur is expected to leave his administration job in the coming weeks.

Mr. Musk is noticeably less popular than the overall effort to pare back the government workforce, which Mr. Trump has described as bloated and corrupt. About half of U.S. adults believe the Republican President has gone too far on reducing the size of the federal workforce, while roughly three in ten think he is on target and 14% want him to go even further.

Retiree Susan Wolf, 75, believes the federal government is too big, but Mr. Musk has “made a mess of everything.” “I don’t think he knows what he’s doing.”