Trump and Elon Musk's business relationship deteriorates, leading to a staggering $34 billion loss for Trump in a single day.
Scalded by a War of Words: The Explosive Feud Between Elon Musk and Donald Trump
The downright feud between titanic tech billionaire Elon Musk and the polarizing 45th U.S. President, Donald Trump, has sent shockwaves through the tech world.
This flame-grilled scrap started with Musk's barbs, which Trump slung during a powwow with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. The online repartee then morphed into a messy feud on social media, with Trump airing accusations against Musk on Truth Social, and Musk hitting back on X (formerly Twitter).
"I've always been an Elon backer, but if he was gonna bite, I'd rather it was at me than the bill - it's a whopper," Trump said to Friedrich Merz in a candid conversation. "I'm not sure our bromance will last, but who knows?"
The spat centered around the One Big Beautiful Bill, a bill that slices taxes and jackhammers the U.S. debt ceiling to a whopping $4 trillion.
Make a note that the U.S. House of Reps voted in favor of this bill in May by a close margin of 215 to 214, with it now hotly debated in the Senate.
Musk, of course, voiced his disapproval, predicting U.S. bankruptcy and urging that this debacle not become law - a cryptic reference to the movie "Kill Bill." He also boosted for a fresh, more fiscally responsible budget project.
"This towering, audacious, gluttonous spending bill is atrocious. A mark of shame on those who voted for it - you ought to know you've messed up. Y'all are storing up a financial disaster for the American people. This will balloon the already gargantuan budget deficit to $2.5 trillion (!!!) and burden citizens with an unbearable debt," Musk wrote.
As per Trump, Musk "went nuts" after learning about the steep decrease in subsidies for electric vehicles and the snubbing of Musk's firm, xAI, from the $500 billion Stargate supercomputer project.
Trump voiced his "disappointment" in Musk, hinting that he'd "done much for him." However, Musk retorted that "without me, Trump wouldn't have won the election, Democrats would've seized the House, and Republicans would've a 51-49 majority in the Senate." Musk's substantial financial backing for Trump's election campaign topped $290 million.
In the heat of their public feud, Elon Musk has pledged to support Trump's impeachment and champion Vice President Mike Pence as a replacement. Also, in response to Trump's threats to sever all government contracts with his companies, Musk fired back by stating that SpaceX would "instantly halt the decommissioning of the Dragon spacecraft."
The nasty brawl has already reaped significant economic fallout. Tesla shares plummeted by around 14.2% during Thursday evening, causing the company to lose a staggering $152 billion in market capitalization and exit the trillion-dollar market cap club. Musk himself shed nearly $34 billion in a single day, according to figures from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which showcases the world's 500 wealthiest individuals.
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- The feud between Elon Musk and Donald Trump, influential figures in the realm of business, personal finance, and politics, has sparked heated debates on policy-and-legislation, notably the One Big Beautiful Bill.
- The online spat between these two figures has had significant implications for the financial world, as Tesla shares plunged by around 14.2%, causing a staggering $152 billion loss in market capitalization, and Musk himself losing nearly $34 billion.
- Musk has expressed his opposition to the One Big Beautiful Bill, likening its potential impact to the movie "Kill Bill," and has advocated for a more fiscally responsible budget project.
- The fallout from their feud has extended to Musk's pledge to support Trump's impeachment and his support for Vice President Mike Pence as a replacement, as well as Musk's response to Trump's threats to sever government contracts with his companies, stating that SpaceX would "instantly halt the decommissioning of the Dragon spacecraft."
