Former allies Donald Trump and Elon Musk have turned their once-public friendship into a bitter and escalating feud. The fallout between the US President and the billionaire entrepreneur unfolded in full public view this week, culminating in personal attacks, political threats, and billions of dollars in financial losses to Tesla.
The peak of Trump-Musk bromance
The alliance began in July 2024, when Musk offered his full-throated support to then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” Musk posted on X just minutes after the incident; he would go on to join Trump on the campaign trail, donning a custom “Make America Great Again” hat.
The relationship between the two quickly progressed. Following Trump’s inauguration, Musk was appointed an unpaid presidential advisor under the “special government employee” category.
Musk confessed his feelings for the Republican President in February this year, saying, “I love @realDonaldTrump as much as a straight man can love another man,” he wrote on ‘X’.
In the early days of the Trump administration, the Tesla CEO became the most public face of the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), where he pushed aggressive cost-cutting reforms.
Trump-Musk fallout
At his final Oval Office press conference on May 31, Trump lavished praise on Musk, calling him “one of the greatest business leaders and innovators the world has ever produced.” It was the final scene of their public camaraderie before things fell apart.
The bromance began to unravel shortly after Musk’s departure from the White House. On multiple occasions, he criticised the Trump administration’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” warning it would increase the federal deficit and undo DOGE’s efforts.
This is what the tech billionaire had to say about the bill: “This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,” Musk posted on his site ‘X’ on June 3.
The tipping point in Trump-Musk ties
Tensions boiled over on June 5 (Thursday) when Trump accused Musk of trying to sabotage the bill due to its removal of electric vehicle tax credits—an alleged blow to Tesla’s bottom line. “Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will any more,” Trump told reporters.
“I’m very disappointed in Elon. He knew every aspect of this bill. He knew it better than almost anybody, and he never had a problem until right after he left,” he added.
Musk fired back online, denying Trump’s version of events. On June 6, he wrote, “This bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!”
However, the rupture turned deeply personal later the same day when Musk suggested that Trump had ties to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
“Trump’s name is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.”
Musk followed with a decades-old quote from Trump on Epstein: “He’s a lot of fun to be with… and many of [the women] are on the younger side.” Musk ended the post with a mocking sign-off: “Have a nice day, DJT!”
He even went on to post a poll for ‘X’ users on whether he should start a new political party for “the 80% in the middle.”
Musk then went further, endorsing calls for Trump’s impeachment and supporting JD Vance as a replacement. He also warned that Trump’s global tariffs would “cause a recession in the second half of this year.”
The US President’s response
Trump threatened to terminate government contracts and subsidies for Musk’s companies on June 6 in response to Musk’s online rant.
The economic fallout was immediate. Tesla shares plunged more than 14% on Thursday (local time), wiping out approximately $152 billion in market value and costing Musk $8.73 billion in personal wealth, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, cited by ANI.
Trump took to Truth Social to respond with renewed fury. “I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago,” Trump wrote later the same day.
He defended the bill as “one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress,” warning that failure to pass it would result in a “68 per cent Tax Increase.”
He doubled down on the attack, saying, “Elon was ‘wearing thin,’ I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate… and he just went CRAZY.”
The online crossfire continued as Trump targeted Musk’s business interests. “The easiest way to save money in our Budget… is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump posted.
How Donald Trump-Elon Musk tensions went from bad to worse in days: A blow-by-blow recap
