Trump-Musk Feud Unveils Concerns Over the Real Powerbrokers in US Politics
By Alicia McCormack
The iconic ‘bromance’ between two of the most powerful men in the world – US President Donald Trump and his ‘first buddy’, the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, came to an unexpected end on 5 June. [1] Playing out on a public stage on X, Musk’s own platform, the dispute raged on with the two taking increasingly personal hits at each other. This could hardly have been imagined given the pair’s previously warm working relationship. Musk is a relative newcomer to politics who came out in devoted support of Trump and donated at least $288 million to his campaign. The two were effusive in their praise of each other. Musk was chosen as special government advisor and led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for a 130-day term. His term ended on 30 May, and he was lauded by Trump for his ‘incredible service’. [2] Trump and Musk did not see eye to eye on everything with a key disagreement on fiscal matters. The Big Beautiful Bill, a motion to reduce non-military government spending and give significant tax breaks, would be the catalyst of their vitriolic clash. [1]
The collapse of a five-month friendship
Musk’s tenure in DOGE focused on cutting expenses and he was clearly dismayed to see an act that would allocate an additional $150 billion to defence spending. [3] He believed it could increase US national debut to $2.5 trillion. In an unprecedented move, he took to X on 3 June and declared: “I’m sorry but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination”. Two days later, at an Oval Office appearance, Trump expressed his ‘disappointment’ with Musk. Musk was quick to clap back with a barrage of posts and X’s most renowned warriors began to battle out their grievances. Musk made several claims such as that Trump would have lost the 2024 election without him. The most shocking allegation he posed was that the real reason the Jeffrey Epstein files had not been released was that they contained incriminating links to Trump. Musk declared: “Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out”. There exists no supporting evidence, but it was a clear effort to damage Trump’s public image to perhaps boost himself. He took the chance to appeal to ordinary American Republicans, arguing that they would pay for the consequences of the bill and positioning himself as an alternative and rival to Trump. He suggested starting a new political party to represent unheard voices. This post remained pinned to the top of his timeline for several days after. [2]
Musk also made a series of threats with far-reaching ramifications. Trump issued a threat to cancel Musk’s government contracts and subsidies, a move that would be destructive to his various companies and their dependent federal agencies. Musk responded by declaring he would ‘immediately’ begin decommissioning the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. NASA is reliant on this craft to reach the International Space Station (ISS) and has been forced to seek his help in the past to rescue two astronauts trapped in the ISS. [2] This highlighted concerns about Musk’s influence in national affairs. Space travel, a national enterprise, hung in the balance over the moodswings of one person. Musk’s ownership of SpaceX, Starlink and X itself among others puts people, businesses, political parties and governments at the mercy of his impulses. His wealth makes him practically untouchable – despite a plunge of 14% in Tesla shares after the argument, creating a loss of $34 billion in his net worth, he remained the richest person in the world by a gap of $90 billion. [4] He later withdrew his threats to decommission the Dragon.
A reconciliation or end of a friendship?
Trump’s response centred on defending the Big Beautiful Bill as ‘one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress’. He reassured his followers that it would ‘put [their] country on a path of greatness’. He made insinuations about Musk’s mental health, referring to him as ‘CRAZY’ in his posts and telling CNN that ‘the poor guy’s got a problem’. [2] After initially stating he had no interest in speaking to Musk again, he adopted a more conciliatory tone in an interview with The New York Post. He claimed there were ‘no hard feelings’ and believed that Musk felt guilty for his actions. Musk also sought an opportunity for a truce and posted on 11 June that some of his posts about Trump went ‘too far’. He deleted many from his page. [5]
However, Musk is not finished taking aim at others in Trump’s circle. On 20 June on X, he accused Sergio Gor, the director of the presidential personnel office, of committing a federal crime by deliberately lying about his place of birth on critical forms. This echoes rumours that Gor is unwilling to disclose Russian heritage. Gor and Musk allegedly have a long-standing feud and clashed in Cabinet meetings. The White House continues to be in full support of Gor. [6] It is unclear what the future holds for Musk and Trump’s relationship or Musk’s place in American politics. This conflict indicates Musk’s political ambitions and hints that he could be warming up for a power struggle in government. It is also a warning. Musk’s tensions with those inside the White House and the erratic behaviour that this sparks could have detrimental consequences for the services within his grip.
References
[1] Aaron Blake. (2025). Who holds the cards in Trump vs. Musk? Trump, but …. [Online]. CNN. Last Updated: 6 June 2025. Available at: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/06/06/politics/republican-party-trump-musk-analysis [Accessed 23 June 2025].
[2] Rachel Clun & Joe Sommerlad. (2025). Trump and Musk’s feud timeline: From Epstein allegations to Elon’s olive branch. [Online]. Independent. Last Updated: 11 June 2025. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-musk-timeline-twitter-truth-social-apology-regret-b2767891.html [Accessed 23 June 2025].
[3] Walter Pincus. (2025). A Closer Look at the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ on Defense Spending. [Online]. The Cipher Brief. Last Updated: 10 June 2025. Available at: https://www.thecipherbrief.com/big-beautiful-bill-defense [Accessed 23 June 2025].
[4] Nick Robins-Early. (2025). The Trump-Musk feud shows danger of handing the keys of power to one person. [Online]. The Guardian. Last Updated: 7 June 2025. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/07/trump-musk-feud-power [Accessed 23 June 2025].
[5] Danai Nesta Kupemba. (2025). Elon Musk says he regrets some posts about Donald Trump. [Online]. BBC News. Last Updated: 11 June 2025. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyn4d33yyno [Accessed 23 June 2025].
[6] Farrah Tomazin. (2025). Musk Accuses Trump Aide of Federal Crime as Feud Explodes. [Online]. MSN. Last Updated: 21 June 2025. Available at: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ar-AA1H7yZ1 [Accessed 23 June 2025].
