Trump–Musk War Of Words Escalates

Tensions between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk has erupted into a full-blown public feud as Trump criticized the Tesla and SpaceX CEO for turning on legislation he once supported.

Trump suggested that Musk was angry over the removal of a tax credit meant to incentivize electric vehicle purchases. I Photo: The White House Flickr

“I’m very disappointed because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill. I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot,” Trump said, according to NBC News reporters Rebecca Shabad and Alana Satlin.

Trump suggested that Musk was angry over the removal of a tax credit meant to incentivize electric vehicle purchases.

“Elon’s upset because we took out the EV mandate, which was a lot of money for electric vehicles. They’re having a hard time with electric vehicles, and they want us to pay billions of dollars in subsidies,” Trump said.

“Elon knew this from the beginning.”

Musk initially brushed off the criticism, replying “whatever” on X. But he soon launched into a tirade against the president and the Republican bill, posting dozens of messages.

“Without me, Trump would have lost the election. Dems would control the House, and Republicans would be 51–49 in the Senate,” Musk wrote, citing the hundreds of millions of dollars he spent on the 2024 election.

“Such ingratitude,” he added.

Trump fired back on Truth Social, claiming Musk “went crazy” after the president “asked him to leave” a White House advisory role. Trump also suggested the administration could cut federal contracts with Musk’s companies, which rely heavily on government business.