US Brotherhood Ices Over After MAGA Meltdown

Time of India

a day ago

US President Donald Trump is not interested in talking with Elon Musk, a White House official said on Friday, signalling that the president and his former ally might not resolve their feud over a sweeping tax-cut bill any time soon.
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US President Donald Trump is not interested in talking with Elon Musk , a White House official said on Friday, signalling that the president and his former ally might not resolve their feud over a sweeping tax-cut bill any time soon.By simultaneously burning bridges with both his customers and now the political movement he funded and amplified for months, Musk now faces a rare convergence of threats — collapsing brand loyalty, shaky revenues, and mounting legal and regulatory risk. Tesla shares on Friday managed to claw back some steep losses from the previous session, when they fell 14% and lost $150 billion in value, the largest single-day decline in the company's history.In interviews with several US media outlets, Trump said he was focused on other matters. 'I'm not even thinking about Elon. He's got a problem, the poor guy's got a problem," he told CNN. This, after Musk backed off the threat of decommissioning SpaceX 's Dragon spacecraft, and wrote, 'You're not wrong,' in response to billionaire investor Bill Ackman saying the duo should make peace.Trump may get rid of the red Tesla Model S that he bought in March after showcasing Musk's electric cars, a White House official said. Musk did not directly address Trump but kept up his criticism of the massive Republican tax and spending bill that contains much of Trump's domestic agenda.On X, Musk amplified remarks made by others that Trump's "big beautiful bill" would hurt Republicans politically and add to the nation's $36.2 trillion debt. He replied "exactly" to a post by another X user that said Musk had criticized Congress and Trump had responded by criticizing Musk personally.Congressional Republicans are siding with Trump, an optimistic sign for eventual passage of a tax cut bill at the root of the two billionaires' public feud.The White House statements came one day after the two men battled openly in an extraordinary display of hostilities that marked a stark end to a close alliance.During the exchange, Trump suggested he would terminate government contracts with Musk's businesses, which include rocket company SpaceX and its satellite unit Starlink.Musk's high-profile allies have largely stayed silent during the feud. But one, investor James Fishback, called on Musk to apologize. "President Trump has shown grace and patience at a time when Elon's behavior is disappointing and frankly downright disturbing," Fishback said in a statement.'Elon isn't functioning to the benefit of his shareholders,' said Ross Gerber, chief executive of Tesla shareholder Gerber Kawasaki, which has been reducing its Tesla holdings over the last few years. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he has been texting with Musk and hopes the dispute is resolved quickly.Trump had initially stayed quiet, but broke his silence on Thursday, telling reporters he was "very disappointed" in Musk.