Seven months after Elon Musk threw his support behind Donald Trump, their once-powerful alliance has turned into a bitter and very public feud on social media.
Musk, the billionaire Tesla CEO, accused the president of dishonesty over his so-called “big, beautiful bill,” which is Trump’s latest tax and spending proposal.
Musk called the bill “a disgusting abomination.”
After days of Musk criticising his tax bill on his social media platform ‘X’, Trump broke his silence today to the media, saying he was “very disappointed in Musk,” the Associated Press reported.
Musk responded on social media in real time, calling out Trump for ingratitude and claiming he played a decisive role in Trump’s 2024 re-election. “Without me, Trump would have lost,” Musk wrote on X. “Such ingratitude.”
In response, Trump turned to his social media platform, Truth Social, and threatened to cancel Musk’s government contracts, including those with Tesla, SpaceX, and Starlink.
Trump said, “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump wrote on his social media network. “I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
The feud shook markets, with Tesla shares plunging nearly 12% by midday.