Americans considered the consequences Friday of the spectacular split between Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump, who threatened to strip the world’s richest man of his huge government contracts.
Trump and Musk’s unlikely political marriage exploded in a fiery public divorce Thursday.
The president said in a televised Oval Office diatribe that he was “very disappointed” after his former aide and top donor criticized his “big, beautiful” spending bill before Congress.
The pair then hurled insults at each other on social media — with Musk even posting, without proof, that Trump was referenced in government documents on disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The row could have major political and economic fallout, as shares in Musk’s Tesla car company plunged and the South African-born tech tycoon vowed that he would end a critical US spaceship program.
But Trump played down the feud during an interview with Politico on Thursday, saying: “Oh it’s okay. It’s going very well, never done better.”
A call with Musk has been scheduled by the White House on Friday in the hope of diffusing the situation, according to the outlet.
Speculation had long swirled that a relationship between the world’s richest person and its most powerful could not last long — but the speed of the meltdown took Washington by surprise.
“I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office as visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz looked on silently.
“Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore.”
A hurt-sounding Trump, 78, said it had been only a week since he hosted a grand farewell for Musk as he left the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Trump later insisted he had asked the tycoon to leave because he was “wearing thin.”
– ‘Ingratitude’ –
Musk, who was Trump’s biggest campaign donor to the tune of $300 million, slammed the president for “ingratitude” and said the Republican would not have won the 2024 election without him.
As the spat got increasingly vindictive, Musk also posted that Trump “is in the Epstein files,” referring to US government documents on the sex offender who killed himself while awaiting trial.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told AFP that Musk’s Epstein tweet “is an unfortunate episode from Elon, who is unhappy with the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ because it does not include the policies he wanted.”
Musk, on his X social media platform, replied “yes” to a post suggesting the president should be impeached, and blasted Trump’s global tariffs for risking a recession.
Trump finally suggested hitting the “crazy” entrepreneur where it hurts, threatening Musk’s multibillion-dollar government contracts including for launching rockets and for the use of the Starlink satellite service.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump said on Truth Social.
Again Musk fired back, with the SpaceX chief saying he would begin “decommissioning” his company’s Dragon spacecraft which is vital for ferrying NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station.
He later appeared to walk that back, replying to a user on X: “OK, we won’t decommission Dragon.”
– ‘Abomination’ –
When the crossfire finally relented after several astonishing hours, Tesla had seen more than $100 billion wiped off the company’s value.
Trump and Musk’s whirlwind relationship had initially blossomed, with the president backing DOGE’s cost-cutting rampage through the US government and the tycoon sleeping over at the White House and traveling on Air Force One.
But the 53-year-old ultimately lasted just four months on the job, becoming increasingly disillusioned with the slow pace of change and clashing with some of Trump’s cabinet members.
The two men had however kept tensions over Trump’s tax and spending mega-bill relatively civil — until Musk described the plan, the centerpiece of Trump’s domestic policy agenda for his second term, as an “abomination” because he says it will increase the US deficit.
Washington will now intently watch the fallout from the row.
Musk posted a poll on whether he should form a new political party — a seismic threat from a man who has signaled he is ready to use his wealth to unseat Republican lawmakers who disagree with him.
Trump ally Steve Bannon — a vocal opponent of Musk — meanwhile called for the tycoon to be deported, the New York Times reported.
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