Musk again distances himself from Trump tariffs by scoffing at Lutnick's attempt to explain duties on penguin island
Tesla and X boss Elon Musk has continued to take jabs at Trump officials defending the president's new tariffs, appearing to want to distance himself from the controversial policy that has been roiling world markets.
President Donald Trump's tariffs have tanked global markets, and the ultra-wealthy like Musk have been feeling the blow. According to a CNBC analysis, Musk has lost just over $30bn since Trump announced his tariffs. On Sunday, stock futures were down across the big three indexes, and analysts predicted that U.S. markets would open lower on Monday.
That loss and continuing volatility may explain why Musk has been taking pot shots at Trump officials like U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and one of the architects of the president's tariff plan, Peter Navarro.
On Sunday, Lutnick made the rounds on cable news and was questioned over why the Trump administration felt the need to slap 10 percent tariffs on the Heard and McDonald Islands, which are located off the coast of Antarctica and are inhabited only by penguins.
Lutnick defended the move as not only reasonable, but necessary, claiming that other countries would otherwise try to use places like the uninhabited islands to find ways to skirt Trump's tariffs.
"If you leave anything off the list, countries that try to arbitrage America try to go through those countries to get to us," Lutnick said during an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation.
An X user shared Lutnick's argument, which drew a response from Musk, who simply said "this is funny" along with a laughing emoji.
Earlier, Musk went after Trump's trade czar, Navarro.
On X, which Musk owns, he took swipes at Navarro, a Harvard-educated economist who advises Trump on trade. Navarro who was originally tapped for a spot in the White House by Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is the author of books on China and the economic threats he says the nation poses to the U.S.
A user on X posted a video from CNN in which Navarro defends the tariffs, noting positively that he went to Harvard. Musk took issue with that, calling it a "bad thing."
"A PhD in Econ from Harvard is a bad thing, not a good thing," he wrote. "Results in the ego/brains>>1 problem."
Another user replied, insisting that Navarro was correct in his defense, but Musk rejected that and questioned Navarro's practical economic experience.
"He aint built s***," Musk wrote.
On Saturday, Musk wasn't throwing bombs at Trump officials, but he did make clear he was opposed to the administration's current trade strategy. During a video address posted to X, Musk said he wanted to see the U.S. and Europe move to a "zero tariffs situation."
'I hope it is agreed that both Europe and the United States should move, ideally, in my view, to a zero tariff situation …creating a free trade zone," he said. "That has certainly been my advice to the President."
Asked about those comments by reporters on Air Force One on Sunday evening, Trump said: 'Europe made a fortune with us. Europe has also had a tremendous surplus with the United States. Europe is a little smaller but they treated us very badly, China has but Europe has also. Europe has been very bad to us.'
The president continued to defend his tariffs policy, even in the face of another markets slide on Monday.
The Tesla CEO was distancing himself from the administration's trade policy days after Trump reportedly told his inner circle — including his Cabinet — that Musk will be stepping back from his very public role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency.
Trump has said he wants to keep Musk active at the White House, but understands if the CEO feels the need to focus on his business.
Musk and DOGE have fueled significant backlash in the early months of Trump's presidency. DOGE has called for the firing of tens of thousands of federal workers and contract workers reliant on federal agencies for their jobs. He has effectively shuttered some agencies, and crippled the efficiency of others.
Saturday's "Hands Off" protest against Musk and Trump drew thousands of demonstrators to cities across the country. Prior to that, demonstrators took up their signs for a "Tesla Takedown" protest that was held at Tesla locations nationwide. Such was the fury directed at Musk that some people began vandalizing and destroying Tesla dealerships and vehicles that Trump was forced to say he would designate any vandal targeting Musk's company as a domestic terrorist.
In addition to drawing additional criticism to the Trump campaign, there is some evidence Musk may have actually hurt the Republicans in an election. Musk was a vocal supporter of Waukesha County Circuit Judge Brad Schimel's candidacy for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The Tesla CEO spent at least $3 million of his own money on the race, and groups he funds spent another $19 million, according to the Associated Press. Musk even donned a cheese hat and handed out million dollar checks to voters who participated in the election.
But Schimel lost by 10 points in a resounding rebuke to Musk.
While Trump has been publicly supportive of Musk, it's also clear that the president has no plans to listen to the Tesla CEO's pleas on trade. Trump doubled down on his tariff plan in a Truth Social post on Sunday.
'We have massive Financial Deficits with China, the European Union, and many others. The only way this problem can be cured is with TARIFFS, which are now bringing Tens of Billions of Dollars into the U.S.A. They are already in effect, and a beautiful thing to behold," Trump wrote. "The Surplus with these Countries has grown during the 'Presidency' of Sleepy Joe Biden. We are going to reverse it, and reverse it QUICKLY. Some day people will realize that Tariffs, for the United States of America, are a very beautiful thing!'
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