A public feud has erupted between tech billionaire Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump. What began with Musk’s criticism of Trump’s budget proposal has escalated into serious allegations of Trump’s involvement in the Epstein investigation and threats to terminate government contracts with Musk’s companies.
The conflict began when Musk publicly criticized Trump’s budget proposal, calling it a “disgusting abomination” full of unnecessary waste.
“I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination”, he wrote on X on Tuesday.
The criticism marked a departure from the previously close relationship between the two, in which Musk has served as an advisor to the White House and led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), among other things.
Trump responded during a press conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and expressed disappointment with Musk.
– I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot, and I’ll be honest, I think he misses the place, Trump said. He continued on his platform Truth Social:
“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 escalates
Musk went on the counterattack by accusing Trump of being part of the Epstein investigation. In a post on X, he wrote:
“Time to drop the really big bomb: Donald Trump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public“.
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!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
The dispute has had concrete consequences. Tesla’s share price fell after the public dispute escalated, and there is now uncertainty surrounding SpaceX’s government contracts. Trump has threatened to terminate these and wrote on Truth Social:
“The easiest way to save money in our budget – billions and billions of dollars, is to terminate Elon’s governmental subsidies and contracts”.
In response, Musk announced that SpaceX will phase out its Dragon spacecraft, which delivers supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).
In light of the President’s statement about cancellation of my government contracts, @SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately pic.twitter.com/NG9sijjkgW
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
Reports claim that the situation has led to crisis meetings in the White House, where both Musk’s and Trump’s teams are working to resolve the conflict. The background to Musk’s budget criticism is believed to be partly due to frustration over a lack of benefits from the Trump administration, according to some sources.
How this public dispute will affect the relationship between Musk and Trump, as well as their respective businesses, remains to be seen as the situation develops.