Trump ‘very disappointed' with Musk
US President Donald Trump has said he is 'very disappointed' with Elon Musk following the tech billionaire's criticism of his tax and spending bill.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and owner of X, recently stepped down from running the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a body created by Trump in his second term to implement widespread federal spending cuts, saying he will return to focusing on his business ventures.
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Elon Musk has deleted an X post claiming that US President Donald Trump's name was in the sealed Jeffrey Epstein files, suggesting that this is the real reason they remain classified. On Thursday, Musk wrote: 'Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.' He added: 'Have a nice day, DJT! Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out.' In another inflammatory post no longer visible in the entrepreneur's X account, Musk responded 'yes' to a message that said 'Trump should be impeached' and Vice President JD Vance 'should replace him.' The businessman has not commented on the issue yet. Both posts became part of a public feud between Trump and Musk. During last year's election, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX set up and funded a pro-Trump political group, donating over $260 million, and was appointed in January to co-lead the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), tasked with reducing federal bureaucracy and wasteful spending. Musk stepped down last week. The rift started after the billionaire condemned Trump's massive tax-cut bill, which is estimated to add $2.4 trillion to the $36.2-trillion US debt over 10 years, calling it a 'disgusting abomination.' The US president then threatened to cancel federal contracts with Musk's companies. The clash then escalated into a series of jabs on social media. Musk accused the president of 'ingratitude' and threatened to paralyze the US space program by decommissioning the Dragon spacecraft. Trump, for his part, said that the tech billionaire had gone 'crazy' and claimed that Musk was actually upset because he 'took away his EV Mandate.' Following the feud, Tesla's shares dropped by about 14.2% on Thursday at market close, wiping roughly $152 billion off the value of the company. Trump Media stock also fell 8%. Trump had previously pledged to declassify the Epstein files, and in February, US Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the release of the 'first phase' of documents. However, key materials – including flight logs, client names, and contact lists – have remained under seal, fueling speculation about who could be implicated. Epstein, an investment banker with deep connections to political and business elites, was arrested in July 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges. He died the following month in a New York jail in what was officially ruled a suicide, though his death instantly sparked widespread controversy and conspiracy theories.
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