The rift between US President Donald Trump and his former adviser Elon Musk has erupted into the open, with each trading insults after the tech billionaire criticized one of Trump’s key domestic policies, the BBC reports.
The two billionaires escalated the feud throughout the day, lobbing barbs at each other on the social media sites they each own, suggesting a bitter conclusion to their unlikely alliance.
Thursday began with Trump saying he was “disappointed” with Musk’s criticisms of his administration’s centerpiece tax and spending bill, musing that it may be the end of their “great relationship”.
Musk then accused Trump of “ingratitude”, adding: “Without me, Trump would have lost the election”.
The breaking point in the relationship between the president and his one-time ally came after weeks of Musk lobbying against the “big, beautiful” spending bill, which was passed by the US House last month and is awaiting a vote in the Senate.
Shortly after leaving the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) after 129 days on the job, Musk took to his site X to call the bill a “disgusting abomination” and posting: “Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong.”
He argued that the bill will irresponsibly add to the US national debt, and encouraged his followers to phone their representatives to express opposition to the spending plan.
Speaking to reporters during a news conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Thursday, Trump defending the bill and said: “I’m very disappointed because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill better than almost anybody sitting here. All of a sudden he had a problem.”
He went on to suggest that Musk was upset about the removal of subsidies and mandates for electric vehicles, which could affect his Tesla business.
Musk denied this was the case and wrote: “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.”
“Pork” is a term used in US politics to describe wasteful government spending, particularly on things meant to curry favour with particular groups or local areas.
The partnership between the two men began when Musk endorsed Trump last July after an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. The Tesla boss reportedly funneled $290m into getting him back into the White House.
