Tensions between President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk rapidly escalated into a public feud, marked by a series of insults and accusations exchanged on social media.
The initial catalyst for the dispute appeared to be Trump‘s proposed tax and spending bill. Speaking from the White House, President Trump expressed his “surprise” and “disappointment” with Musk’s public criticism of the legislation.
Musk swiftly retaliated on his social media platform, X, going as far as to suggest Trump should face impeachment.
The President responded by threatening to sever government contracts with Musk’s companies. This threat had an immediate impact, with shares of Tesla plummeting over 14% in U.S. trading. Several hours later, perhaps in response to the escalating financial and contractual implications, Musk notably withdrew an earlier threat to decommission a crucial SpaceX spacecraft utilized by U.S. astronauts.
Musk attacks on Trump get personal
The feud took a deeply personal turn when Musk, without providing any evidence, suggested on X that Trump’s name appeared in unreleased government files related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Musk’s incendiary post read: “Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!” He later added, “Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out.”
Time to drop the really big bomb:@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.
Have a nice day, DJT!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
This allegation stunned those close to both Trump and Musk. However, a source familiar with the matter dismissed Musk’s claims, stating that the administration had already released the Epstein files, which included Trump’s name. It was also noted that the mere inclusion of a person’s name in such files does not inherently imply wrongdoing. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt characterized Musk’s claim as “an unfortunate episode,” suggesting it stemmed from his dissatisfaction with the bill’s failure to incorporate his desired policies.
While Trump’s past proximity to Epstein is not new information—he has been photographed with Epstein, and commented on knowing him “like everybody in Palm Beach knew him” but having a “falling out”—Musk’s unsubstantiated allegation fueled existing concerns among some right-wing circles about the transparency surrounding Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges. The source also questioned why Musk would have aligned himself closely with Trump if he truly believed the former president was deeply involved with Epstein.
Clash over EV mandates and subsidies
Beyond the Epstein controversy, the disagreement also revolved around policy specifics, particularly concerning electric vehicle (EV) mandates and subsidies. Trump asserted that Musk’s criticism of his “Big Beautiful Bill” was not about spending but rather a reaction to changes affecting Tesla’s business. He claimed Musk “only developed a problem when he found out I would cut the EV mandate,” and later posted on Truth Social that Musk “went CRAZY” over the EV changes.
Musk, however, challenged Trump’s narrative. He encouraged lawmakers to retain the EV subsidy cuts but demanded that the “MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK” be removed from the bill, highlighting the perceived unfairness of cutting EV incentives while leaving oil and gas subsidies untouched. He also referenced past comments where he had discouraged EV tax credits and a clip in which Trump himself stated that Musk had “never asked me for a thing.”
Trump maintained that Musk was fully aware of the bill’s details and had no objections until after it passed. “He knew every aspect of this bill… and he never had a problem until right after he left,” Trump claimed. Musk countered, stating that Trump’s version of events was “false” and that “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!”
The personal attacks further extended to a dispute over Trump’s election victories. Trump asserted he would have won the crucial state of Pennsylvania even without Musk’s assistance.
Musk, who had reportedly spent hundreds of millions of dollars and campaigned for Trump, quickly retorted, claiming he was the decisive factor in Trump’s presidential win. “Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,” Musk declared, adding in a subsequent post, “Such ingratitude.”
Related: Musk Halts Dragon Spacecraft After Trump Threatens to Cut Government Contracts