U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that he might investigate Elon Musk amid their feud and that he could even be deported.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Tuesday, Trump was asked if he might deport Elon Musk to South Africa.
He replied, “I don’t know, we’ll have to take a look.”
Donald Trump said he would ‘take a look’ at the idea of deporting Elon Musk
Highlights
- Trump suggested investigating or deporting Elon Musk, despite Musk being a U.S. citizen since 2002.
- Trump called DOGE the 'monster' that might 'go back and eat Elon,' referring to the Department of Government Efficiency.
- Musk criticized Trump's $5 trillion spending bill, calling it pork-filled and threatening to create a new political party.
Image credits: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
“DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon,” Trump said, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, which Musk helped launch when relations between the two were still friendly.
The latest clash comes as Musk publicly opposed Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act on Monday when the billionaire threatened to create a new political party, the ‘America Party.’
The bill narrowly passed in the Senate Tuesday, with the decisive ‘yes’ vote coming from Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who described the process as “agonizing.”
Shortly after Trump’s comments, Musk took to X to say, “Physics sees through all lies perfectly.”
In another post, he claimed that “the crux” of Trump’s ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill’ is the “Removal of funding for enforcement of federal contempt of court orders.”
“This is nominally aimed at the removal of illegal immigrants, but obviously also enables many other abuses of power by the President,” added Musk.
In March, when Musk and Trump were on good terms, Musk warned about the “tyranny of the judiciary” that was undermining democracy by blocking the president’s actions.
On Monday, Musk called the Republican Party the “PORKY PIG PARTY,” accusing it of reckless spending.
Image credits: Win McNamee/Getty Images
“We live in a one-party country,” he posted, referencing the bill’s estimated $5 trillion addition to the national debt.
The Congressional Budget Office estimated the bill will add $500 billion to federal deficits over the next three years. However, the independent Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget warned that the full cost would be just over $5 trillion over the next decade.
Trump fired back early Tuesday on Truth Social, claiming Musk was mainly upset because the bill would cut electric vehicle (EV) subsidies, which could hurt Tesla.
“Elon may get more subsidies than any human being in history,” Trump said. “Without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.”
Musk threatened to create a new political party if Trump’s domestic policy bill was passed
The president also suggested DOGE could review the federal funding Musk’s companies receive, saying it might save the U.S. “a fortune.”
In response, Musk posted on X, “So tempting to escalate this. So, so tempting. But I will refrain for now.”
The confrontation marks a dramatic shift in the once-strong alliance between Trump and Musk.
Just months ago, Musk had shattered fundraising records for the Republican Party, pledging even more financial support heading into the midterms.
Now, he has promised to fund primary challengers against any Republican who voted for the bill “if it is the last thing I do on this Earth."
Image credits: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
One of his pledges is to support Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky. Massie has been a major holdout against Trump’s bill, and Trump called him “a very bad guy.”
However, when asked about Musk’s influence within the Republicans, Trump dismissed the concerns. “I don’t think he should be playing that game with me,” he said.
In early June, tensions between Musk and Trump boiled over and devolved into personal attacks.
Musk criticized Trump’s bill, calling it a “pork-filled Congressional spending bill.”
The bill was passed in the Senate on Tuesday
Musk then claimed that Trump appears in sealed government documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, but has since deleted the tweet and said his tweets had “gone too far”.
Trump responded on Truth Social by threatening to cut billions in federal subsidies and contracts to Musk’s companies, saying it was “the easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars.”
He has since doubled down on this threat.