Trump accuses Musk of losing his mind in conversation with ABC, with Musk Sr. asking for the situation to resolve peacefully.
In a casual chat Friday morning, President Trump brushed off his verbal spat with Elon Musk like it was no big deal, acting unbothered despite their heated exchange the previous day. When asked about a potential call with Musk later in the day, Trump replied, "You mean the guy who's lost it?" He went on to say he wasn't keen on chatting with Musk right now. Instead, he touched on other topics like inflation, foreign investment, and his upcoming visit to China.
Sources close to Trump said the president seems more melancholic than angry about the fallout with Musk. One of his advisors mentioned that Trump seemed "down in the dumps" after their altercation.
There have been whispers that Trump might either give away or sell the red Tesla he bought to support Musk. The car was parked on West Executive Avenue the day before. Trump had shown interest in Tesla models back in March when Musk's company suffered a setback upon entering the political arena.
Elon Musk's father, Errol Musk, expressed his desire for his son to put an end to the spat during an interview at Delhi Airport. He opined that Trump, having been voted into office by the American people, would prevail in this battle. Errol attributed his son's behavior to high stress levels.
The feud commenced after Musk criticized Trump's signature tax and immigration bill, with Musk suggesting Trump would lose the 2024 election without his support and even making claims about Trump being involved in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Trump countered by labeling Musk as "crazy" and threatening to terminate government contracts and subsidies.
Vice President JD Vance verbally backed Trump, praising his accomplishments, despite not directly addressing Musk's accusations. In a post hours after the back-and-forth between Trump and Musk, Vance claimed the media perpetuates the false narrative that Trump is impulsive or short-tempered.
The White House deemed the public spat between Trump and Musk an "unfortunate episode" from Musk, who opposes the One Big Beautiful Bill due to its lack of his policies[1][2][3]. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that Trump is focused on passing this legislation to make America great again.
Musk seemed to soften his stance towards Trump, withdrawing his threat to decommission the spacecraft used for space travel after receiving advice to "cool off" and "take a step back" from a user on X. Musk agreed, commenting, "Good advice. Ok, we won't decommission Dragon."
our website' Will Steakin and Lalee Ibssa contributed to this report.
Insights:
- The tiff between Trump and Musk revolves around the latter's opposition to a Republican-backed spending bill [3].
- Musk made a controversial claim that Trump's name is in the "Epstein Files," later deleting the post [1][2].
- Trump considered giving away or selling his red Tesla as a gesture of solidarity with Musk [2].
- Musk's parents have not directly intervened in the feud, but his father suggested that the matter should be allowed to "fizzle out" [2].
- Despite the heated disagreement over a Republican-backed spending bill, Elon Musk later seemingly softened his stance towards President Trump, choosing not to decommission a spacecraft used for space travel.
- The feud between Elon Musk and President Trump has permeated international headlines, with general news outlets and social media buzzing about their exchange.
- Celebrities, including Vice President JD Vance, have weighed in on the altercation, with Vance praising Trump's accomplishments and criticizing the media for portraying him as impulsive or short-tempered.
- The White House, while acknowledging the "unfortunate episode" between Trump and Musk, remains focused on passing the One Big Beautiful Bill, which Musk opposes due to its lack of his policies.
