Trump and Musk to speak after trading insults on social media

Washington — White House aides scheduled a call between US President Donald Trump and Teslo chief Elon Musk for Friday, Politico reported, after a huge public spat that saw threats fly over government contracts and ended with the world’s richest man suggesting the US president should be impeached.

The reported call could ease the feuding after an extraordinary day of hostilities — largely conducted over social media — that marked a stark end to a close alliance.

Shares in Musk’s Tesla closed down more than 14% on Thursday, losing about $150bn in market value in the largest single-day decline in value in its history. In pre-market European trading on Friday they pared some of those losses, rising 5% after the Politico report that the two men were scheduled to speak.

Musk had bankrolled a large part of Trump’s presidential campaign and was then brought in as one of Trump’s most visible advisers, heading up a sweeping and controversial effort to downsize the federal workforce and slash spending.

The verbal punches erupted on Thursday after Trump criticised Musk in the Oval Office and the pair then traded barbs on their social media platforms: Trump’s Truth Social and Musk’s X.

The falling-out had begun brewing days ago when Musk, who left his role as head of the department of government efficiency a week ago, denounced Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending bill.

The president initially stayed quiet while Musk campaigned to torpedo the bill, saying it would add too much to the nation’s $36.2-trillion in debt.

Trump broke his silence on Thursday, telling reporters he was “very disappointed” in Musk.

“Look, Elon and I had a great relationship. I don’t know if we will any more,” Trump said.

As Trump spoke, Musk responded on X.

“Without me, Trump would have lost the election,” wrote Musk, who spent nearly $300m backing Trump and other Republicans in last year’s election.

In another post, Musk asserted that Trump’s signature import tariffs would push the US into a recession later this year.

“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.

Minutes after the closing bell, Musk replied, “Yes,” to a post on X saying Trump should be impeached, something that would be highly unlikely given Trump’s Republicans hold majorities in both chambers of Congress.

Musk’s businesses also include rocket company and government contractor SpaceX and its satellite unit Starlink.

Musk, whose space business plays a critical role in the US government’s space programme, said that as a result of Trump’s threats he would begin decommissioning SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft. Dragon is the only US spacecraft capable of sending astronauts to the International Space Station.

Late on Thursday, Musk backed off the threat.

In another sign of a possible detente to come, Musk subsequently wrote: “You’re not wrong,” in response to billionaire investor Bill Ackman saying Trump and Musk should make peace.

Punching back

Trump and Musk are both political fighters with a penchant for using social media to attack their perceived enemies, and many observers had predicted a falling-out.

Musk hit at the heart of Trump’s agenda earlier this week when he targeted what Trump has named his “big, beautiful bill”, calling it a “disgusting abomination” that would deepen the federal deficit.

His attacks amplified a rift within the Republican Party that could threaten the bill’s prospects in the Senate.

Non-partisan analysts say Trump’s bill could add $2.4-trillion to $5-trillion to the nation’s $36.2-trillion in debt. A prolonged feud between the pair could make it harder for Republicans to keep control of Congress in next year’s midterm elections if it leads to a loss of Musk’s campaign spending or erodes support for Trump in Silicon Valley.

“Elon really was a significant portion of the ground game this last cycle,” said a Republican strategist with ties to Musk and the Trump administration who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.

“If he sits out the midterms, that worries me.”

On Tuesday, Musk posted that “in November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the US people”.

Musk had already said he planned to curtail his political spending in the future. His increasing focus on politics provoked widespread protests at Tesla sites, driving down sales while investors fretted that Musk’s attention was too divided. 

Reuters