Donald Trump reveals ‘true feelings' about fued with Elon Musk: ‘Nothing catches me by surprise'
US President Donald Trump revealed "his true feelings" about his public spat with tech billionaire Elon Musk in an interview with the New York Post. 'Nothing catches me by surprise. Nothing,' the president was quoted as saying when asked about the personal attacks launched at him by Musk, the former chief of the Department of Government Efficiency.
Trump reportedly turned his conversation with The Post toward his polling numbers instead of directly addressing the strife with his former top ally.
He said, "The numbers are through the roof, the stock market is up, billions are pouring in from tariffs, and my poll numbers are the highest they've ever been. Other than that, what can I tell you, right?"
Later, Trump said while addressing reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday that he has no plans to speak with Elon Musk, signaling that the president and his former ally might not resolve their feud over a sweeping tax-cut bill anytime soon.
Trump said he wasn't "thinking about" the Tesla CEO. "I hope he does well with Tesla," Trump was quoted by Reuters as saying. However, Trump said a review of Musk's extensive contracts with the federal government was in order.
"We'll take look at everything," the president said. "It's a lot of money, He takes a lot of subsidy, so will take a look at that," he said. But Trump added, 'only if it's to be fair for him and for the country.'
In a barrage of posts on the X social media platform since June 5, Elon Musk has criticised Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill', which awaits the Senate's nod. The Bill was narrowly passed the House of Representatives earlier.
Musk amped up his attacks on Trump over the tax bill after he stepped down as the head of DOGE late May this year. The Tesla CEO's 130-day mandate as a "special government employee" in the Trump administration was set to expire around May 30.
Trump had then bid him farewell. He had credited Musk with 'a colossal change in the old ways of doing business in Washington" and said some of his staff would remain in the administration. Meanwhile, Musk said he expects 'to remain a friend and an adviser and certainly, if there's anything the president wants me to do, I'm at the president's service.'
Things turned south for Trump and Musk after the SpaceX owner unleashed an assault on the US President's flagship spending legislation -- the 'Big Beautiful Bill'. He urged Americans to lobby Congress to "KILL the BILL."
On June 5, Musk intensified his offensive, cautioning that "America is in the fast lane to debt slavery" while insisting on a comprehensive overhaul of the legislation.
"A new spending bill should be drafted that doesn't massively grow the deficit and increase the debt ceiling by 5 TRILLION DOLLARS," Musk demanded.
Musk's comments came at a pivotal moment for Trump's self-described "big, beautiful bill", which encompasses sweeping tax reductions and expanded military expenditure.
The House of Representatives had approved the measure by the narrowest of margins last month, with only three Republican members dissenting against solid Democratic resistance.
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