What started as a simmering policy disagreement has exploded into an all-out social media war between President Trump and Elon Musk — complete with personal insults, political threats, and even accusations tied to Jeffrey Epstein, the late financier and convicted sex offender.
Their once-powerful alliance has quickly unraveled in public view, with Trump taking to Truth Social and Musk firing back on X. Here’s how the clash began and why it matters.
What happened?
During an Oval Office meeting Thursday with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump took a swipe at Musk, saying he was “very surprised” and “very disappointed” by the billionaire’s public criticism of his signature spending bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
“Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
Musk wasted no time firing back on X, claiming Trump wouldn’t have won the election without him. “Such ingratitude,” he added.
Those comments only seemed to irritate the president more. Trump fired back on his own social media site, Truth Social, calling Musk “crazy,” saying that the “easiest way to save money” would be to “terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.” Back on X, Musk said: “Go ahead, make my day.” He then announced that his aerospace company, SpaceX, would ground Dragon, the spacecraft NASA uses to service the International Space Station. This move poses a serious threat to the Trump administration’s ability to bring astronauts and cargo back and forth between the International Space Station and Earth.
As the feud continued to escalate, Musk even alleged that Trump’s name is listed in classified files related to Epstein. “Time to drop the really big bomb,” Musk wrote on X. “@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!”
Then, he reposted a comment calling for President Trump to be impeached and replaced by his Vice President, J.D. Vance. “Yes,” Musk replied to the commenter’s idea.
Why the split?
Musk ignited the feud on Tuesday, slamming Trump’s massive spending bill as a “disgusting abomination,” citing government projections that it would significantly increase the federal deficit. By Wednesday afternoon, he was already urging lawmakers to “kill the bill,” which still needs to clear the Senate.
Trump initially waved off the criticism, chalking up Musk’s outrage to the repeal of an electric vehicle tax credit — something he claimed the Tesla CEO had known about “from the beginning.” As the clash escalated, Tesla’s stock tumbled 14 percent. Musk, for his part, fired back, saying he’d never even seen the bill before it passed the House.
“False, 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 posted on X.
What’s the bigger picture?
The rift marks a dramatic turn for two men who once appeared politically inseparable. Musk spent nearly $300 million to help elect Trump and quickly became one of his closest advisers. He was a regular presence on Air Force One, often appeared at the White House with his young son, and served as a high-profile symbol of the administration’s tech-forward agenda.
Just two months ago, Trump even bought a Tesla on the White House lawn — a display of loyalty as Musk’s brand took a hit over his increasingly visible role in the administration. But last week, Musk abruptly stepped down and floated the idea of starting a new political party — the clearest sign yet that the alliance had fractured.
Still, Musk is certainly not the first to leave Trump’s inner circle. The former president has a long track record of high-profile breakups: Billionaire Peter Thiel distanced himself after the 2020 election, former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was ousted after clashing with Trump over foreign policy, and even longtime fixer Michael Cohen turned critic following legal troubles.
Like Musk, many of them were once close confidants who played key roles in shaping Trump’s image.
