Donald Trump has accused Elon Musk of “losing his mind” as the dramatic breakdown between America’s most powerful person and the world’s richest person escalated into a full-blown feud that could have seismic political and economic consequences.
In a series of phone calls to US media on Friday morning, Trump snapped back at Musk, after the tech mogul and Republican financier launched an extraordinary social media attack on the president the day before, which ended with him accusing Trump of being named in the so-called “Epstein files” – documents related to the convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The row between the two men, who were near constant companions during the latter stages of Trump’s presidential campaign and his first months in the White House, showed no sign of abating, with Musk’s self-proclaimed status as “first buddy” rapidly disappearing in the rear-view mirror.
Trump, who is not known to take criticism well, made his displeasure clear on Friday, doubling down on his newfound hostility to Musk, who spent nearly $300m to elect the 78-year-old. In an interview with ABC News, Trump was asked about reports of a potentially peacemaking phone call scheduled with Musk for later in the day, to which Trump responded, “You mean the man who has lost his mind?” and added that he was “not particularly” interested in talking to his former confidante right now.
The president also spoke to CNN, saying, “I’m not even thinking about Elon. He’s got a problem. The poor guy’s got a problem,” and told Politico that the relationship with Musk was “going very well, never done better”.
As well as giving many people a reason to return to X – the social media site Musk owns and where he has recently been amplifying rightwing, pro-Trump views – the bitter fight could heavily affect the political landscape. Musk suggested starting a new political party, one “that actually represents the 80% in the middle”, and given his wealth he would be able to pump millions into next year’s midterm elections, potentially influencing races across the country.
In the space race, meanwhile, Nasa has become increasingly reliant on Musk’s SpaceX company, with the Dragon spacecraft being used to transport the agency’s astronauts to and from the International Space Station, and Musk pledged to decommission the Dragon in the wake of the Trump fight. He quickly signalled an about-face, but it was a reminder of Musk’s influence, which is further bolstered by the key role the Starlink satellite broadband platform plays in Ukraine’s fight against the Russian invasion.
Trump, meanwhile, threatened to cancel Musk’s US government contracts, and the president’s ally Steve Bannon suggested that Musk, a South African-born American citizen, “should be deported from the country immediately”. In a sign of the immediate impact on Musk, his net worth fell by $33bn on Thursday alone, while Tesla’s shares initially dropped by about 14.2%, wiping roughly $152bn off the value of the company.
The rolling quarrel began after Musk criticized Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” – tax and spending legislation that experts say would add $2.4tn to the national debt, strip more than 10 million people of their health insurance and enshrine tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Trump said he was “very disappointed in Elon” over the criticism, as Musk said Trump’s trade policies would cause a recession, before the dispute escalated wildly.
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Many had predicted that the relationship between Musk and Trump, two men known for their large egos and unpredictable behavior, could not last, but the sheer level of vitriol stunned Americans and would seem to make a reconciliation unlikely.
Musk did at least appear to proffer an olive branch in a reply to a post from the hedge fund owner Bill Ackman, who called on Trump and Musk to “make peace for the benefit of our great country”, but on Friday Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, told NBC News “there are no plans” for a call between the two men.
In the meantime, it was business as usual for Trump on Friday, the president offering a series of misleading takes on the US job market, which new figures show slowed in May. Musk was unusually quiet on social media, as Tesla’s shares rebounded somewhat from Thursday’s loss, rising by 6%, although at least one customer seemed keen to divest from the company: the White House said on Friday that Trump plans to sell his Tesla Model S.
