Trump-Musk bromance descends into online brawl
President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Elon Musk in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 30, 2025, in Washington. —Photo by Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s threat on Thursday to cut off government contracts to Elon Musk’s companies prompted the world’s richest man to suggest the US president should be impeached—marking a stark end to an unlikely alliance and leaving onlookers wondering what was next.
The hostilities between the former allies intensified when the President, addressing reporters in the Oval Office, criticized the Tesla CEO. The pair then lobbed verbal barbs at each other on their social media platforms — Trump’s Truth Social and Musk’s X.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump posted.
Wall Street traders on Thursday dumped Tesla shares, and the electric vehicle maker closed down 14.3 percent and lost about $150 billion in market value—Tesla’s largest single-day decline in its history.
Minutes after the closing bell, Musk replied, “Yes,” to a post on X saying Trump should be impeached—an unthinkable move in Congress where Trump’s Republicans hold majorities in both chambers.
The trouble started brewing days ago, when Musk denounced Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending measure—or what the President described as his “big, beautiful bill.”
Trump initially held his tongue while Musk campaigned to torpedo the bill. Then he broke his silence on Thursday, saying he was “very disappointed” with Musk.
“Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore,” Trump said, as Musk responded in real time on X.
“Without me, Trump would have lost the election,” wrote Musk, who spent nearly $300 million as the biggest donor for Trump and other Republicans in last year’s election.
In another post, Musk asserted that Trump’s signature tariffs would push the US into a recession later this year.
READ: Trump threatens to cut Musk’s government contracts as feud escalates
‘Cool off’
Responding to Trump’s threats, Musk said he would begin decommissioning the Dragon spacecraft of his rocket company SpaceX.
Musk’s space business, which includes satellite unit Starlink, plays a critical role in the US government’s space program. Dragon is the only US spacecraft capable of sending astronauts to the International Space Station.
Then late on Thursday, Musk backed off the threat as he wrote “You’re not wrong,” in response to billionaire investor Bill Ackman urging Trump and Musk to make peace.
Responding to a follower on X urging the two to “cool off and take a step back for a couple of days,” Musk wrote: “Good advice. Ok, we won’t decommission Dragon.”
Many observers had predicted a falling out between Trump and Musk—both political fighters with sizable egos and a penchant for using social media to attack their perceived enemies.
Even before Musk’s departure from the administration last week, his influence had waned following a series of clashes with Cabinet members over his cuts to their agencies.
Loud, vocal critics
For Trump, the fight was the first major rift he has had with a top adviser since taking office for a second time, after his first term was marked by numerous blow-ups.
Trump parted ways with multiple chiefs of staff, national security advisers and political strategists during his first White House tenure.
A few, like Steve Bannon, remained in his good graces, but many others—like Ambassador John Bolton—became loud and vocal critics.
As one of Trump’s most visible advisers, Musk led the Department of Government Efficiency—which mounted a sweeping and controversial effort to downsize the federal workforce and slash spending.
But upon leaving that role, he targeted Trump’s “big, beautiful bill”—calling it a “disgusting abomination” that would deepen the federal deficit.
His attacks amplified a rift within the Republican Party that could threaten the bill’s prospects in the Senate.
Nonpartisan analysts say the measure could add $2.4 trillion to $5 trillion to the nation’s $36.2 trillion in debt.
‘New political party’
Trump asserted that Musk’s true objection was the bill’s elimination of consumer tax credits for electric vehicles.
He also suggested that Musk was upset because he missed working for the White House.
“He’s not the first,” Trump said on Thursday. “People leave my administration…then at some point they miss it so badly, and some of them embrace it and some of them actually become hostile.”
In his post urging Trump to “KILL the BILL,” Musk said he was fine with the planned cuts to electric vehicle credits as long as Republicans rid the bill of its “mountain of disgusting pork” and wasteful spending.
He also pulled up past quotes from Trump decrying the level of federal spending, adding, “Where is this guy today?”
Musk further suggested it was “time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80 percent in the middle.”
Looking to midterms
A prolonged feud could make it harder for Republicans to keep control of Congress by the midterm elections in November next year—especially if it leads to a loss of Musk’s campaign funds or erodes support for Trump in Silicon Valley.
“Elon really was a significant portion of the ground game this last cycle” said a Republican strategist with ties to Musk and the Trump administration who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
“If he sits out the midterms, that worries me.”
On Tuesday, Musk posted that by “November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.”
His increasing focus on politics had provoked widespread protests at Tesla sites, driving down sales while investors fretted that his attention had become too divided.
But Musk has said he plans to curtail his political spending in the future.
