Musk denies using drugs after NYT report: ‘Lying their a– off'
'To be clear, I am NOT taking drugs! The New York Times was lying their a– off,' Musk wrote on X Saturday. 'I tried *prescription* ketamine a few years ago and said so on X, so this not even news. It helps for getting out of dark mental holes, but haven't taken it since then.'
Musk was responding to a report from The New York Times last Friday about concerns over his drug use on the campaign trail. The Times reported Musk told people during the campaign he was using ketamine so often that it impacted his bladder, along with using psychedelic mushrooms and taking ecstasy.
The report cited photos and messages with people who knew him and claimed he would travel every day with a box containing 20 pills, some of which were marked as Adderall.
The Times communications team defended the reporting in a post on X.
'Kirsten Grind and Megan Twohey's thoroughly sourced report provides an important and fair look into Musk's drug use and family conflicts,' the Times wrote on X. 'They interviewed a dozen people who have known or worked with him, and saw private text messages, legal documents and photographic evidence.'
'Elon Musk is just lashing out because he doesn't like our article,' the team continued.
The Times said Musk had multiple opportunities to reply or rebut the report before its publication.
'He declined, opting instead to try to distract with a social post and no evidence,' the team wrote.
Musk slammed the outlet a day earlier, telling reporters, 'Is The New York Times — is that the same publication that got a Pulitzer Prize for false reporting on the Russiagate? Is that the same organization? I think it is.'
President Trump, who sat next to Musk in the Oval Office, replied, 'It is.'
'I think the judge just ruled against New York Times for their lines about the Russiagate hoax, and they may have to give back their Pulitzer Prize. That New York Times. Let's move on,' Musk said, referring to a recent ruling permitting Trump's lawsuit against the Pulitzer Board to proceed.
Trump sued the board in 2022 over the Pulitzers awarded for stories about Russian interference in the 2016 election. Lawyers for the Pulitzer Board urged the judge to pause the suit until Trump is no longer in office.
There is no indication that The New York Times's Pulitzer Prize award has been impacted as the case plays out in court.
Trump on Friday said he was not aware of Musk's reported drug use but signaled he was not concerned by it, calling the Tesla CEO a 'fantastic guy.'
The report was released on Musk's last day as a special government employee. Musk led Trump's so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) efforts to reduce the size and scope of government.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
12 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Ontario premier says he doesn't trust Trump and warns the US president could reopen trade pact
The new tariff, which took effect on Friday after the two countries failed to hit an Aug. 1 deadline to secure a new trade agreement, applies only to goods not covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement that Trump negotiated during his first term. Advertisement Trump previously hailed the agreement as 'the fairest, most balanced and beneficial trade agreement we have ever signed. ' Carney has said about 85% of trade with the U.S. remains tariff-free because of USMCA. Ford said Trump likely won't wait for the scheduled review of the agreement next year. 'He's not waiting until 2026. At any given time, President Trump — not that he even follows the rules — he can pull the carpet out from underneath us,' Ford told reporters in Toronto Wednesday. 'I'm going to ask the people, do you trust President Trump? I don't.' Carney told a press conference on Tuesday that he has not talked to Trump in recent days but would speak with him 'when it makes sense.' Sector-specific tariffs on Canada, like the 50% duty on steel, aluminum and copper, remain in place. Advertisement Carney also suggested he may lift counter-tariffs if that helps Canada in the ongoing trade dispute.
New York Times
13 minutes ago
- New York Times
China's Exports Surged Again in July, but Not to America
China's exports surged even more than expected in July, as Chinese companies raced to ship goods to Southeast Asia and other regions, often for onward shipment to the United States, before President Trump could raise tariffs on imports. China's overall exports were up 7.2 percent in July from the same month last year, while imports were up 4.1 percent. Its exports to Southeast Asia and Africa, key regions for reshipment to the United States, rose more than twice as fast as its overall exports. China's exports to the European Union, its main alternative to the American market, were also up very strongly. By contrast, China's exports directly to the United States were down by more than a fifth in July, as buyers in the United States appeared wary of paying Mr. Trump's extra 30 percent tariffs. China's economy relies heavily on exports, in part because a steep fall in apartment prices in recent years has ruined the personal finances of millions of households, leaving them unable to afford the vast quantities of goods pouring out of China's factories. China's trade surplus reached almost $1 trillion last year, with its surplus in manufactured goods equal to a tenth of the country's entire economic output. Ever since senior American and Chinese officials reached a truce on tariffs in Geneva in mid-May, the United States has been charging an extra 30 percent tariff on imports from China. That is in addition to existing tariffs, notably the 25 percent tariff that Mr. Trump had imposed on roughly a third of American imports from China in his first term. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CBS News
13 minutes ago
- CBS News
Higher U.S. tariffs officially in effect on dozens of nations
Washington — President Trump officially began levying higher import taxes on dozens of countries Thursday, just as the economic fallout of his months-long tariff threats was beginning to create visible damage to the U.S. economy. The White House said that starting just after midnight EDT, goods from more than 60 countries and the European Union began facing tariff rates of 10% or higher. Products from the European Union, Japan and South Korea are being taxed at 15%, while imports from Taiwan, Vietnam and Bangladesh are being taxed at 20%. Mr. Trump also expects places such as the EU, Japan and South Korea to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. He immediately took to his Truth Social platform to hail the levies, saying, "IT'S MIDNIGHT!!! BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN TARIFFS ARE NOW FLOWING INTO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!" About an hour before that, he posted, "RECIPROCAL TARIFFS TAKE EFFECT AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT! BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, LARGELY FROM COUNTRIES THAT HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS, LAUGHING ALL THE WAY, WILL START FLOWING INTO THE USA. THE ONLY THING THAT CAN STOP AMERICA'S GREATNESS WOULD BE A RADICAL LEFT COURT THAT WANTS TO SEE OUR COUNTRY FAIL!" "I think the growth is going to be unprecedented," Trump said Wednesday afternoon. He added that the U.S. was "taking in hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs," but he couldn't provide a specific figure for revenues because "we don't even know what the final number is" regarding tariff rates. Despite the uncertainty, the Trump White House is confident that the onset of his broad tariffs will provide clarity about the path of the world's largest economy. Now that companies understand the direction the U.S. is headed, the administration believes they can ramp up new investments and jump-start hiring in ways that can rebalance the U.S. economy as a manufacturing power. But so far, there are signs of self-inflicted wounds to America as companies and consumers alike brace for the impact of new taxes. What the data has shown is a U.S. economy that changed in April with Trump's initial rollout of tariffs, an event that led to market drama, a negotiating period and Trump's ultimate decision to start his universal tariffs on Thursday. After April, economic reports show that hiring began to stall, inflationary pressures crept upward and home values in key markets started to decline, said John Silvia, CEO of Dynamic Economic Strategy. "A less productive economy requires fewer workers," Silvia said in an analysis note. "But there is more, the higher tariff prices lower workers' real wages. The economy has become less productive, and firms cannot pay the same real wages as before. Actions have consequences." Even then, the ultimate transformations of the tariffs are unknown and could play out over months, if not years. Many economists say the risk is that the American economy is steadily eroded rather than collapsing instantly. "We all want it to be made for television where it's this explosion - it's not like that," said Brad Jensen, a professor at Georgetown University. "It's going to be fine sand in the gears and slow things down." Trump has promoted the tariffs as a way to reduce the persistent trade deficit. But importers sought to avoid the taxes by importing more goods before the taxes went into effect. As a result, the $582.7 billion trade imbalance for the first half of the year was 38% higher than in 2024. Total construction spending has dropped 2.9% over the past year, and the factory jobs promised by Trump have so far resulted in job losses. The lead-up to Thursday fit the slapdash nature of Trump's tariffs, which have been variously rolled out, walked back, delayed, increased, imposed by letter and frantically renegotiated. The process has been so muddled that officials for key trade partners were unclear at the start of the week whether the tariffs would begin Thursday or Friday. The language of the July 31 order to delay the start of tariffs from Aug. 1 said the higher tax rates would start in seven days. On Wednesday morning, Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, was asked if the new tariffs began at midnight Thursday, and he said reporters should check with the U.S. Trade Representative's Office. Trump on Wednesday announced additional 25% tariffs to be imposed on India for its buying of Russian oil, bringing their total import taxes to 50%. He has said that import taxes are still coming on pharmaceutical drugs and announced 100% tariffs on computer chips, meaning the U.S. economy could remain in a place of suspended animation as it awaits the impact. The president's use of a 1977 law to declare an economic emergency to impose the tariffs is also under challenge. The impending ruling from last week's hearing before a U.S. appeals court could cause Trump to find other legal justifications if judges say he exceeded his authority. Even people who worked with Trump during his first term are skeptical that things will go smoothly for the economy, such as Paul Ryan, the former Republican House speaker, who has emerged as a Trump critic. "There's no sort of rationale for this other than the president wanting to raise tariffs based upon his whims, his opinions," Ryan told CNBC on Wednesday. "I think choppy waters are ahead because I think they're going to have some legal challenges." Still, the stock market has been solid during the recent tariff drama, with the S&P 500 index climbing more than 25% from its April low. The market's rebound and the income tax cuts in Trump's tax and spending measures signed into law on July 4 have given the White House confidence that economic growth is bound to accelerate in the coming months. As of now, Trump still foresees an economic boom while the rest of the world and American voters wait nervously. "There's one person who can afford to be cavalier about the uncertainty that he's creating, and that's Donald Trump," said Rachel West, a senior fellow at The Century Foundation who worked in the Biden White House on labor policy. "The rest of Americans are already paying the price for that uncertainty." (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.) 8/7/2025 12:02:21 AM (GMT -4:00)
