Elon Musk and Donald Trump are locked in a very public, very bitter feud. The feud escalated when Musk lashed out on Twitter last week at a big-spending Trumpian bill— which Trump is cheering on. Musk, the billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, railed against the expansive spending package. He labeled it a “disgusting abomination” and predicted that it would cause federal budget deficits to go through the roof. This conflict has gone so far as to prompt Trump to threaten eliminating government contracts to Musk companies. He is interested in bringing action if Musk continues to invest in Democratic candidates.
The fight was initiated when Musk personally attacked the spending bill. That bill, HB 370, has already passed through the House and is currently being considered in the Senate. Trump, who remains “very confident” that the bill will be approved by July 4, accused Musk of being “disrespectful to the office of the president.” This was Everson’s way of announcing that his romance with the billionaire entrepreneur is pretty much over. I have no desire to engage with him,” he said.
This warning by Trump was included in a longer interview with NBC News, in which he threatened Musk with vengeance. He stated, “If he does, he’ll have to pay the consequences for that,” referring to any support Musk might lend to Democratic candidates opposing Republican supporters of the spending bill.
Musk would not be dissuaded. In a stunning act of hubris, he even took credit for Trump winning the 2016 presidential election, saying that Trump would have lost without him. He underscored his discontent with Trump’s political maneuvering by declaring, “In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.” This comment gets to the heart of Musk’s increasing annoyance with today’s political landscape.
Yet for all of those differences, Trump seems undaunted in his confidence that the spending bill will go through. He rejected the notion that Musk could be a wild card to sink this whole initiative. He is adamant that the bill’s passage is essential for good governing.
Even as tensions rise, a White House official said that, for his part, Trump is “not interested” in reconnecting with Musk. This rift in communication represents a notable change from the cooperative dynamic they enjoyed in the past.
“I gave him a lot of breaks, long before this happened, I gave him breaks in my first administration and saved his life in my first administration,” – Trump
As both figures continue to navigate their public personas amid this political clash, it remains unclear how this feud will impact their respective futures in business and politics. The eventual outcome of the spending bill could be a turning point that determines whether their brewing competition continues to escalate.