Trump–Musk feud escalates as Musk accuses Trump of appearing in Epstein files
Key Takeaways
- Trump is threatening to terminate federal contracts with Elon Musk after Musk opposed a tax and spending package.
- Musk made accusations involving Trump and Jeffrey Epstein on X, leading to a 20% drop in Tesla shares.
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President Donald Trump threatened to terminate federal contracts with Elon Musk today after the billionaire publicly opposed Trump’s tax and spending package, marking a dramatic rupture in their political alliance.
As the feud escalated, with Trump posting several times on Truth Social and Musk responding on X, Musk 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.
Have a nice day, DJT!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
“@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT! Mark this post for the future. The truth will come out.”
The accusation came shortly after Trump warned he would move to cut off all federal support for Musk’s companies.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump posted on Truth Social, hours after expressing “very deep disappointment” in Musk during an Oval Office press conference.
Musk, who had just stepped down as director of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, responded with a series of sharply worded posts.
“Without me, Trump would have lost the election,” he wrote on X.
Tesla shares plunged 20% following the exchange, erasing $150 billion in market value.
The conflict erupted after Musk called Trump’s signature bill a “disgusting abomination” on Tuesday and urged his 220 million X followers to oppose it. He also polled users about creating a new political party “that actually represents the 80% in the middle.”
During a press conference at the White House, Trump portrayed Musk as ungrateful.
“Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will anymore,” Trump said, claiming he had already dismissed Musk from his position. “Elon was wearing thin. I asked him to leave.”
Trump defended the bill in a fresh post Thursday afternoon, calling it “one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress.”
He added, “It’s a Record Cut in Expenses, $1.6 Trillion Dollars, and the Biggest Tax Cut ever given. If this Bill doesn’t pass, there will be a 68% Tax Increase, and things far worse than that. I didn’t create this mess, I’m just here to FIX IT.”
The clash comes just a week after the two appeared together at a White House ceremony marking the end of Musk’s official role, where his team had cut billions in foreign aid and thousands of federal jobs.
In 2024, Musk contributed nearly $300 million to Republican campaigns and helped Trump build ties with Silicon Valley donors. A White House official said the administration sees his recent actions as a clear shift in allegiance and emphasized that it no longer feels any obligation to him.
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