In a heated clash between two of the world’s most powerful figures, United States President Donald Trump has openly threatened to terminate multi-billion-dollar contracts between the U.S. government and companies owned by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk. The fallout between the two men intensified on Thursday, June 5, as Trump issued a series of scathing remarks from both his office and his social media accounts.
The confrontation stemmed from Musk’s public criticism of Trump’s proposed tax legislation currently under Senate review, which the Tesla and SpaceX boss claims would significantly worsen the national deficit.
According to reports, Trump suggested that Musk turned “hostile” after being removed from the president’s circle of advisers. He further alleged that Musk’s interest in politics is driven purely by his business agenda.
A Financial Times report revealed that Musk spent over $250 million to support Trump’s 2024 re-election efforts. Earlier this year, Musk had declared he still loved Trump “as much as a straight man can love another man.” In response to Trump’s latest remarks, Musk fired back on X (formerly Twitter), calling for Trump’s impeachment and warning that proposed trade tariffs would plunge the country into recession. He also threatened to decommission SpaceX capsules, which have been instrumental in NASA’s astronaut missions.
Additionally, Musk leveled a serious accusation against Trump, claiming he had associations with the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The ongoing discord between Trump and Musk has now reached a point where it could have lasting effects on both Trump’s administration and the broader U.S. political landscape. Musk reportedly hinted at plans to establish a new political party aimed at displacing the Republican establishment.
Trump, once a staunch defender of Musk against allegations of corporate misconduct, has now pledged to dismantle the policies that financially benefitted Musk’s enterprises. In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated:
“I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!”
Trump outlined his intentions to sever the financial ties between the federal government and Musk’s various business ventures, including Starlink and SpaceX. He remarked:
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget … is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.”
Musk, meanwhile, has argued that the president is not being forthright about his motivations behind the new tax proposal, insisting it would only deepen the country’s budget deficit.
In a related development, Naturenex earlier addressed viral claims suggesting that U.S. President Donald Trump ordered an investigation into Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s academic records at Chicago State University. The report confirmed that no such directive was issued.
Rumours had circulated across social media platforms alleging that Trump had threatened sanctions against Chicago State University if false statements about Tinubu’s academic history were made. It will be recalled that Tinubu’s academic records became a trending topic soon after he secured the presidential ticket of the APC and continued to make headlines following his election victory.
