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San Francisco Chronicle
a day ago
- Automotive
- San Francisco Chronicle
Elon Musk turns against Trump, calls for impeachment as Tesla stock plunges
Elon Musk publicly signaled support for the impeachment of President Donald Trump on Thursday, deepening a dramatic split between the two men that sent Tesla 's stock tumbling 16% and stunned political and financial circles alike. Musk & Trump: From Allies to Adversaries November 2022 Musk reinstates Trump's Twitter account after a public poll. 2023 Their alliance grows. Musk praises Trump's immigration stance and visits the southern border. March 2024 Musk says he won't back any candidate yet, but leans away from Biden. July 2024 After an attempt on Trump's life, Musk endorses him and reportedly donates millions of dollars. August 2024 Musk hosts Trump for a live interview on X. January 2025 Trump gives Musk a government role to help cut federal spending. Inauguration Day Musk makes a controversial hand gesture at Trump's swearing-in, sparking backlash. April–May 2025 Musk steps back from his role, then quits — criticizing Trump's big spending bill. June 2025 The feud goes public: Musk mocks Trump's policies and alleges that Trump's name appears in secret records tied to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump fires back. Musk briefly threatens to pull NASA support, then backs down. It came hours after Musk made an explosive allegation — without offering evidence — that Trump's name appears in secret records tied to Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier with connections to powerful figures worldwide. 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,' Musk wrote, as he alleged the president had ties to the convicted sex offender — an accusation that has not been independently verified. The White House moved quickly to counter the allegations. 'Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave,' Trump posted on Truth Social, referring to Musk's recent departure as head of the Department of Government Efficiency. 'I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars … and he just went CRAZY!' Speaking Thursday from the Oval Office, where he was supposed to be discussing an end to the Russia-Ukraine war with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump expressed regret over the deteriorating relationship. 'Elon and I had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore,' he said. 'I was surprised.' Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group, which trades under the ticker DJT, also fell 8% amid the feud. House Democrats quickly seized on Musk's bombshell claim that Trump's name appears in classified records related to Epstein. Within hours, lawmakers renewed calls for the unsealing of those documents. Trump retaliated by threatening to eliminate billions of dollars' worth of federal contracts and subsidies benefiting Musk's companies, including Tesla, his internet company Starlink and rocket company SpaceX. 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,' the president wrote on Truth Social. 'I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!' 'Go ahead, make my day,' Musk quickly replied on X, where he warned that Trump's economic policies could backfire. 'The Trump tariffs will cause a recession in the second half of this year,' he wrote on X. Musk later announced SpaceX would begin decommissioning the Dragon spacecraft it used to carry astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station for NASA. Just days earlier, the two men had shared a stage in the Oval Office, exchanging praise and posing with a ceremonial golden key to the nation. 'Elon's service to America has been without comparison in modern history,' Trump said at the time. Musk, wearing a black T-shirt with wording that read 'The Dogefather,' returned the compliment. 'The Oval Office finally has the majesty that it deserves, thanks to the president,' he said. Musk spent at least $250 million backing Trump's reelection campaign last year, including a daily $1 million voter sweepstakes in Pennsylvania. On Thursday, Stephen Bannon, a longtime Trump confidant and frequent Musk critic, called for formal investigations into the billionaire's businesses and immigration history. 'I believe a formal inquiry into his immigration status is warranted,' Bannon told the New York Times. 'I am firmly convinced he is in the country illegally and should be deported without delay.' Rapper Kanye West, an ardent Trump supporter who now performs as Ye, took a more conciliatory tone. In a post on X, he pleaded with both men to reconcile. President vs Elon. Who wins? My money's on Elon. Trump should be impeached and JD Vance should replace him. — Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) June 5, 2025 By late Thursday, tensions appeared to be easing. White House officials told Politico they had arranged a call between Trump and Musk for Friday. 'It's okay,' Trump said of the dispute. 'It's going very well, never done better.' Musk also seemed to tone things down. When an X user suggested both sides 'take a step back for a couple days,' the Tesla CEO replied, 'Good advice. Ok, we won't decommission Dragon.' Amid the political firestorm, Tesla faces worsening fundamentals. The automaker is grappling with declining sales in Europe and diminished brand strength in the U.S. A long-delayed robotaxi pilot in Austin, Texas, set for June 12, faces mounting pressure from competitors such as Waymo, which is already logging 250,000 autonomous rides per week. Tesla stock is down more than 25% this year.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Musk's Trump Bromance Exploded Over Tweet Backing Biden: Sources
He may be out of the White House, but former president Joe Biden has played a starring role in the messiest divorce in Washington. Days before he went nuclear by calling Donald Trump's mega-spending bill a 'disgusting abomination', Elon Musk blasted out a post that marked a key turning point for the president and his allies. As Musk prepared to depart from his official duties at the Department of Government Efficiency, the Tesla chief and his electric vehicle company took to social media to warn that the 'big beautiful bill' would gut clean energy tax credits and undermine Trump's 'drill baby drill' American energy revival. 'Abruptly ending the energy tax credits would threaten America's energy independence and the reliability of our grid,' Tesla wrote on its X account on May 28, which Musk then reposted to his 220 million-plus followers. 'There is no change to tax incentives for oil & gas, just EV/solar,' Musk added, once again highlighting the fact that clean energy was being gutted while subsidies for other sectors remained. While it was hardly the scorched-earth tirade Musk has embarked on since, Trump and his allies were not impressed. After all, here was a man who had been invited into Trump's inner circle, to Mar-a-Lago and high-level Cabinet meetings, suddenly attacking the bill publicly for gutting a Biden-era initiative that Republicans had long viewed as a 'green new scam'. 'As the president said, he was very disappointed with Elon,' a White House source told the Daily Beast after the pair's bromance ended on Thursday. The clean energy tax credits formed part of the Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden views as a key part of his legacy. 'It's the largest climate investment in history!' the former president would often boast. But Trump's mega-spending bill would put those credits on the chopping block, disqualifying Tesla electric vehicles from a $7,500 incentive at a time when the company's sales have plummeted. In a note to clients on Thursday, JPMorgan estimated that eliminating the EV tax credit could cost Tesla about $1.2 billion annually. Trump has suggested that the loss of federal support for EVs led Musk to turn on him. 'I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' wrote Trump in a post on Truth Social. It wasn't a 'mandate' but a tax credit designed to incentivize investment in clean energy technology. It also happened to be signed into law by the only person who has beaten Trump. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The chaos muppet California needed — but too late
Has Elon Musk become the climate champion California wanted him to be all along? The Tesla CEO's apparent pivot to self-interested electric vehicle policy advocate might be happening just in time to influence the Senate's direction on $7,500 electric vehicle rebates, which the House megabill gutted last week. It's likely too late, though, to save the Clean Air Act waivers that let California enforce its stricter-than-federal clean-vehicle rules. Those are sitting on President Donald Trump's desk after Congress voted last month to roll back the state's authority despite warnings that the move could be illegal. And despite elected Democrats' seizing on Musk's sharp break with Trump as ammunition against the House bill, California climate advocates aren't following suit. "He is certainly a chaos muppet, but whether he is the one California needs continues to be very much in question," said Craig Segall, a former deputy executive officer at the California Air Resources Board and a policy consultant. "He may sort of be blundering through a semi-appropriate door, but he doesn't really seem like someone people would want to keep company with." Musk had reportedly been trying recently to save the tax credit behind the scenes, despite having declared himself indifferent to its fate early in the campaign cycle. He denied having flipped on Thursday, even after Tesla Energy, the company's solar and battery arm, began publicly opposing the bill's cuts to solar and battery tax credits last week. "Keep the EV/solar incentives cuts in the bill, also cut all the crazy spending increases in the Big Ugly Bill so that America doesn't go bankrupt!" he said on X. But it's California's clean-vehicle targets that famously made his company billions through the sale of credits to other automakers who needed to meet the state's zero-emission sales targets. He hasn't mentioned those publicly, despite claims by Trump that they were at the heart of their sudden split. "I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" Trump said on social media Thursday. Regardless of his positions on electric vehicles, Musk's break from Trump world is a seemingly rational move as the company's sales have plummeted in recent months amid backlash over his role in slashing the federal workforce and supporting far-right candidates around the world. In California, where high electric vehicle penetration has long made it a barometer of Musk sentiment, drivers have turned on Tesla. The company now represents less than 44 percent of the state's EV market, down from nearly 80 percent in 2020. Mike Murphy, a veteran Republican consultant and EV advocate, said Musk's abrupt shift is likely to only harden Trump's resolve against EVs, which he bashed on the campaign trail. 'My guess is this spat has hardened the Trump administration's desire to punish the entire EV category,' Murphy said. Another irony: He's alienating Trump to the point where Tesla's stock is dropping further on fears of regulatory retaliation. It fell nearly 15 percent today, with a big dip coming just after Trump's noon screed. "The quickly deteriorating friendship and now "major beef" between Musk and Trump is jaw dropping and a shock to the market and putting major fear for Tesla investors on what is ahead," Dan Ives, an analyst with Wedbush Securities, said in a client note Thursday. Like this content? Consider signing up for POLITICO's California Climate newsletter. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
How the Betting Markets Predict Trump-Musk Feud Will End
Investors on betting markets are having a field day with the fiery break-up between President Donald Trump and former 'first buddy' Elon Musk. The trending page on the Polymarket, which famously beat pollsters in projecting Trump's 2024 win, is teeming with bets about the feud. Will Trump and Musk reconcile in the next week? Will Trump be impeached? Will the president throw the world's richest man behind bars? Ultimately, Polymarket investors aren't buying the most dramatic ends to the quarrel. The odds of Trump jailing his former adviser are only 4 percent. And the chances that Trump ends up being impeached this year are at 11 percent. On Kalshi, another similar prediction market, investors think there's an 18 percent chance that Trump could sue Musk and a 5 percent chance that the U.S. could ban X, Musk's social media platform. But investors aren't bullish on a quick reconciliation, either. On Polymarket, There's just a 2 percent chance that Trump will apologize to Musk by Monday, and a 17 percent chance that they settle their differences by next Friday. Trump said on Friday that he has no intention of speaking to Musk anytime soon—and the markets believe him. The Polymarket odds that the men meet this month are 19 percent. Kalshi is more optimistic, predicting that there's a 55 percent chance that Musk and Trump talk on the phone before July. When the feud erupted Thursday, one of the biggest bombshells was dropped by Musk when he alleged that Trump was in the 'Epstein files.' He claimed that Trump's ties to the sex-offender financier were why government documents about Jeffrey Epstein had not been released. Several of the Polymarket bets addressed the allegation. And investors don't believe we will get any new information on Trump's relationship with the pedophile anytime soon. There was a 5 percent chance that the files Musk alleged exist would reach the public in June and an equally low chance that evidence of Trump visiting Epstein's notorious island would emerge. Kalshi, however, predicted a 42 percent chance that some new Epstein files are released this year—whether they feature Trump or not. Tensions had simmered between Trump and Musk over the last week, with the world's richest man offering harsh criticism of the president's 'big, beautiful' spending bill. Musk called it 'pork-filled' and urged Congress to vote against it. The clash exploded on Thursday, however, with the two billionaires exchanging blows on social media. Trump posted, 'Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' Musk fired back with the Epstein claim and a call for Trump's impeachment. Trump didn't take the bait, writing: 'I don't mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago. This is one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress.' Later on Thursday, Musk signaled he might be open to a truce. 'You're not wrong,' the tech entrepreneur wrote in response to a post from investor Bill Ackman calling for Trump and Musk to 'make peace.'
Time of India
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
Trump, Musk, and the Big Beautiful Breakup
Donald Trump, left, and Elon Musk depart the White House to board Marine One en route to New Jersey, March 21, 2025, in Washington. (AP) TOI correspondent from Washington: The epic war between the world's richest man and the world's most powerful man kept America -- and the world -- enthralled on Friday as attempts to bring about a truce between Elon Musk and Donald Trump failed. There was a brief prospect of reconciliation on Thursday night as mutual friends tried to patch things up after Musk ratcheted up his attacks on the President, linking Trump to the pedophile Epstein. 'Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!' he posted on X. Trump ignored the charge but he responded to the broader issue of their falling out, saying he had asked Musk to leave the White House because he was 'wearing thin,' and he (Musk) went "crazy" because the administration took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that "nobody else wanted." Things went further south when the President posted, "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn't do it!' That triggered Musk to warn that he would decommission SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, critical for NASA's International Space Station operations, a threat he later retracted. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trending in in 2025: Local network access control [Click Here] Esseps Learn More Undo Amid the heated, real-time exchanges on social media, billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman got in a word edgewise, asking the warring duo to reunite "for the benefit of our great country." Musk responded, "You're not wrong," and reportedly sought a Trump phone call, which the President rejected on Friday, characterizing Musk as the "man who has lost his mind." Officials though warned the President could change his mind. Chances of a truce appeared to have been derailed by Musk himself after he mused about the President's political mortality in the hours before, telling social media gadabout Laura Loomer that "Trump has 3.5 years left as President, but I will be around for 40+ years…" This came after he tried to talk up JD Vance for the Oval Office following a Trump impeachment proposed by some critics. But the US vice-president smacked down the idea, saying, "President Trump has done more than any person in my lifetime to earn the trust of the movement he leads. I'm proud to stand beside him." Several GOP lawmakers rallied around Trump saying Musk had "gone too far" in the feud. Musk also posted a poll on X asking, "Is it time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80% in the middle?" There were more than 5 million responses, with more than 80 percent saying "yes." A variety of other characters waded into the drama, offering millions of political junkies a constant high. While Ackman and other billionaires and tech bros sought to keep a lid on the explosion, former Trump advisor Steve Bannon and other MAGA hardliners, who see Musk as an interloper, poured gasoline on the fumes, demanding Trump seize's Musk's SpaceX invoking national security provisions and deport Musk, although the South Africa born Tesla boss is now a US citizen. A current Trump advisor Peter Navarro, among many in the President's inner circle happy with the departure of the man some called a "co-President," said Musk was just 'a special government employee with an expiration date.' Russia too stepped into the American swamp, offering Musk political asylum if his feud with Trump went further south. Some of the feuding bordered on the petulant, with several media outlets reporting that Trump now plans to sell the red Tesla S that he bought with great fanfare after celebrating Musk and his cars on the White House lawns just a few weeks ago. The banner headline in the NewYork Post said it all: I HATE MY X.
