Tensions between Donald Trump and Elon Musk exploded into public view yesterday, as the US president said he was “very disappointed” by his billionaire former aide’s criticisms and Musk hit back in real time on social media.The world’s richest man responded by live-tweeting on his X social media platform as Trump spoke on television, saying that the Republican would not have won the 2024 election without him and slamming him for “ingratitude.”“Elon was ‘wearing thin,’ I asked him to leave,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.”In an extraordinary rant as visiting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sat mutely beside him, 78-year-old Trump unloaded on SpaceX and Tesla boss Musk in his first comments on the issue.“I’m very disappointed, because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill better than almost anybody sitting here… All of a sudden, he had a problem,” Trump said when asked about Musk.The clash comes less than a week since Trump held a grand Oval Office farewell for Musk as he wrapped up his time leading the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).South African-born Musk, 53, hit back minutes later, saying Trump’s claims he had advance sight of the bill were “false.”“Whatever,” he added above a video of Trump saying Musk was upset about the loss of subsidies for electric vehicles.Musk then ratcheted up the public spat even further, saying the Republican would have lost the election without his support. He was the biggest donor to Trump’s campaign, to the tune of nearly $300mn.“Without me, Trump would have lost the election,” Musk said on X. “Such ingratitude.”Tesla shares fell sharply on Wall Street, down 8%, after his comments, in a sign of the huge stakes for a falling out between the world’s richest man and its most powerful.A wistful-sounding Trump took reporters through the break-up with Musk on live television, in what at times sounded more like a therapy session than a meeting with a foreign leader.Trump talked about Musk’s farewell appearance in the Oval Office on Friday, when he turned up with a black eye that he said was caused by a punch from his son.
