The relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk has collapsed less than a week after the pair poured praise on each other in the Oval Office, as ITV News Correspondent Geraint Vincent reports
Donald Trump has said he won’t be speaking to Elon Musk “for a while” after the billionaire speculated about the US president’s links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump’s comments come a day after his falling-out with Musk turned into a public row, sparked by the president saying he was “very disappointed” with Musk’s opposition to his key policy plans.
Musk hit back, claiming Trump wouldn’t have won the election without his financial backing. Trump then threatened to cancel Musk’s government contracts, prompting Musk to accuse Trump, without evidence, of hiding Epstein files that mention him.
On Friday, Trump told ITV News’ US partner CNN that he is “not even thinking about” the tech billionaire.
“I’m not even thinking about Elon. He’s got a problem. The poor guy’s got a problem,” Trump said.
He went on to say: “No. I won’t be speaking to him (Musk) for a while I guess, but I wish him well.”
Trump is also planning to get rid of the Tesla he bought in March, a senior White House official told CNN. Another official said the red car may be sold or possibly given away.
In March, Trump turned the South Lawn at the White House into what looked like a Tesla showroom – an apparent nod to Musk, who was then an adviser.
That same day, Trump announced he was buying a Tesla and had also purchased a Cybertruck for his granddaughter.
Musk’s speculation, including reposting a 1992 video of Trump and Epstein on his platform X, has drawn global attention.
On Thursday night, he wrote: “Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public.”
The insinuations tapped into long-standing suspicions among conspiracy theorists and online sleuths that incriminating and sensitive files in the government’s possession have yet to be released.
Last year, Trump lashed out at allegations that he was on the plane of the disgraced financier, saying: “I was never on Epstein’s Plane, or at his ‘stupid’ Island.”
How did their public spat unfold?
The spectacular blow-up between the president of the United States and the world’s richest man played out on their respective social media platforms after Trump first broached the topic in a White House meeting with Germany’s new leader.
He suggested using the US government to financially harm his fellow billionaire.
He told reporters during a sit-down with Friedrich Merz on Thursday: “Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore.”
The bitter breakup happened just days after they appeared together at the White House, and Trump thanked Musk for his brief but tumultuous time in the government.
Trump had largely remained silent as Musk stewed over the last few days on his social media platform X, condemning the president’s signature tax cuts and spending bill.
But Trump clapped back Thursday in the Oval Office, lamented their frayed relationship and said he was “very disappointed in Musk.”
Musk responded on his social media as Trump’s meeting with Merz was aired. Trump then turned to his own social media network, Truth Social, and threatened to use the US government to hurt Musk’s internet company, Starlink, and rocket company, SpaceX.
“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!”
“This just gets better and better,” Musk quickly replied on X. “Go ahead, make my day.”
The public row quickly unfurled online, and very quickly hit Musk financially.
Shares of Tesla, his electric vehicle company, accelerated following Trump’s speech, falling by 9% – their latest notable move since the election.
The shares doubled in the weeks after Trump was elected, gave back those gains and more during Musk’s time at Doge and then rallied after he vowed in April to focus much more on Tesla and his other companies.
Musk later offered up an especially stinging insult to a president sensitive about his standing among voters: “Without me, Trump would have lost the election,” Musk retorted. “Such ingratitude,” Musk said in a follow-up post.
Trump and Musk have not spoken since Musk’s initial outburst, multiple sources told CNN.
The back-and-forth between Trump and his megadonor, former “first buddy”, marked a very public breakup of a former centre of power for the second Trump administration.
The pair’s stunning statements on Thursday called into question what Musk would do with his expansive wealth in future elections.
Musk, who was the largest publicly disclosed donor in last year’s federal elections, had vowed to give millions to Republican candidates in 2026, then later indicated that he planned to scale back his political spending.
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