As his power grows, D.C. wonders: How do you lobby a man like Elon Musk?

Over the past year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk significantly cut the company’s Washington operation, laying off some of its top lobbyists.

Messages to Tesla’s government affairs chief went unanswered, part of a “bloodletting” in which a formerly aggressive and high-metabolism operation went dark, said a person familiar with the cuts, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The move unwound years of groundwork to establish a footprint in the nation’s capital, as the company sought to influence policy initiatives key to its future, such as electric vehicle infrastructure and autonomous driving regulations.