Trump says Elon Musk bromance may be over after attacks on tax bill
Trump says Elon Musk bromance may be over after attacks on tax bill 'Elon and I had a great relationship,' President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on June 5. 'I don't know if we will anymore.'
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'Kill the bill': Musk urges lawmakers to stop Trump's tax cut bill
Elon Musk blasted President Trump's new tax bill as a 'disgusting abomination,' urging millions of followers to lobby lawmakers to 'kill the bill.'
WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump said his close relationship with Elon Musk might be over after the world's richest man and former top White House adviser spent the past few days slamming the president's signature tax and policy bill.
"Elon and I had a great relationship," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on June 5. "I don't know if we will anymore."
The president's comments triggered a war of words with Musk, who said Trump wouldn't have won a second term if it weren't for the quarter of a million dollars in campaign cash he pumped in his 2024 campaign.
"Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate," Musk said in a post on X, the social media company he owns. "Such gratitude."
Trump's remarks were his first since Musk called Trump's reconciliation bill "a disgusting abomination" and later urged his social media followers to lobby their representatives to "kill the bill." Musk has objected to the deficit implications with the legislation.
"I'm very disappointed with Elon. I helped Elon a lot," Trump said during a lengthy response to a question from a reporter about Musk's criticism as the president sat next to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for a bilateral meeting.
Trump accused Musk of opposing the legislation because it would end a $7,500 consumer tax credit for buyers of electric vehicles, a policy of former President Joe Biden that has benefited electric car companies like Musk's Tesla.
"Elon knew the inner workings of the bill better than anybody sitting here," Trump said. "He had no problem with it. All of a sudden he had a problem, and he only developed the problem when he found out we're going to cut EV mandate."
Musk fires back at Trump: 'Whatever'
More: Trump overpowers Musk's attacks on mega tax bill with blizzard of orders
Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, fired back at Trump shortly after the president's comments.
"Whatever," Musk said in a post on his social media platform X. "Keep the EV/solar incentive cuts in the bill, even though no oil & gas subsidies are touched (very unfair!!), but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill."
Musk added: "In the entire history of civilization, there has never been legislation that both big and beautiful. Everyone knows this!"
He also disputed Trump's assertion that Musk was kept abreast of the bill's details. "False" Musk said. "This bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!"
Musk left the White House last week after leading the government-slashing Department of Government Efficiency during the first four month's of Trump's second term. Although Musk first voiced criticism of Trump's bill before his exit, Trump had seemed to smooth things over when he welcomed him to the Oval Office for a friendly send-off news conference on May 30.
"I'll be honest," Trump said six days later on June 5. "I think he misses the place. I think he got out there and all of a sudden he wasn't in this beautiful Oval Office."
Musk, prior to his White House departure, asked for his special government employee status to be extended beyond 130 days to allow him to continue to lead DOGE, but the White House declined, a source told USA TODAY.
Last weekend, Musk expressed disappointment after Trump withdrew his nominee for administrator of NASA, Jared Isaacman, a billionaire commercial astronaut with close ties to Musk.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
(This story has been updated with more information.)
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