Key Points – The public feud between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, which exploded on Thursday, June 5th, with mutual accusations and threats, has multiple potential causes.
-Beyond Musk’s recent criticism of Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” and his departure from a government role, a key factor appears to be Trump’s decision last month to pull the NASA nomination of Jared Isaacman, a Musk ally.
-This move is seen by some as “payback” against Musk. Trump has also escalated the conflict by threatening to pull government contracts from SpaceX and has decided to sell the Tesla he publicly acquired in March.
From DOGE to Done: Trump’s Pulled NASA Nomination Key to Musk Split?
The tensions between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, his erstwhile “special government employee” and the world’s richest man, exploded into view on Thursday, with Trump declaring that he doesn’t expect to have a close relationship with Musk going forward, Musk ripping the “Big Beautiful Bill” legislative package, and later calling for Trump’s impeachment and even stating that the president is named in “The Epstein Files.”
By the end of the day, Trump was threatening to pull government contracts for Musk’s companies.
It was perhaps inevitable that these two men with large egos, both of whom are accustomed to getting their way and who have frequently broken with former rivals, would end up at odds.
The question is, why now?
Many Points of Contention
According to a Vox analysis of the split, there are several possible explanations for why Trump and Musk’s relationship has hit a breaking point.
There’s Musk’s criticism of the “Big Beautiful Bill,” which he has chided for adding to the deficit and going against DOGE’s spirit. There’s the idea that some measures in the bill could hurt Musk’s business interests.
“‘Elon was “wearing thin,” I asked him to leave, 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 said in a Truth Social post earlier this week.
There’s also the question of the fate of NASA.
A Pulled Nomination
Musk’s company, SpaceX, works closely with NASA and the Pentagon and subsists largely on government contracts. It also performs various functions that no other existing company can do, meaning that Trump’s threats to pull contracts, especially quickly, are likely not possible.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump said Thursday on Truth Social. “I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
One underplayed issue in the split has been Trump’s decision, last month, to pull the nomination of Jared Isaacman, a Musk ally, to lead NASA. Isaacman had already gotten through Senate committee approval and was awaiting confirmation by the full Senate.
Per The New York Times, Trump had announced that he was pulling Isaacman because of past donations to Democrats. However, “people with knowledge of the events say Mr. Isaacman had disclosed the contributions.”
Per the Times, “this looked a lot like payback against Musk,” shortly after he formally left his government position.
A CNN report got further into the weeds, “a top Trump aide lobbied against the nomination of Jared Isaacman,” and that “Musk’s exit left room for a faction of people in Trump’s inner circle, particularly Sergio Gor, the director of the White House Presidential Personnel Office and longtime MAGA supporter, to advocate for installing a different nominee.”
Selling Tesla
While Trump hasn’t yet cut Musk’s government contracts, he has made moves to get rid of his Tesla, which he famously announced he was buying on the day of the “car show” at the White House in March.
According to the Times, which cited a White House official, Trump has decided to sell the bright red Tesla Model S that he said he was buying in March. The $80,000 car remains parked at the White House, and it doesn’t appear that the president ever drove it, although the Times stated that his staff was invited to use it. Trump also announced that he had purchased a Tesla Cybertruck for his granddaughter, Kai, although it’s not clear if she will have to return it.
“Generally, presidents avoid promoting or endorsing products because executive branch employees are barred from doing so on behalf of friends and relatives. But such rules do not apply to the president, who professed that he was only seeking to help Mr. Musk,” The Times said.
About the Author:
Stephen Silver is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, and contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. For over a decade, Stephen has authored thousands of articles that focus on politics, technology, and the economy. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
