US President Donald Trump: Relationship with billionaire Elon Musk “is over”

On June 7, US President Donald Trump warned billionaire Elon Musk that he would face “serious consequences” if he decided to fund Democratic candidates to confront Republican lawmakers who support a large-scale tax cut bill. The White House owner also said that his relationship with the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX “is over”.

In an interview with NBC News over the phone, Mr. Trump refused to specify what those consequences were, and said that there had been no discussion about investigating billionaire Elon Musk.

When asked if the relationship with billionaire Musk was over, Mr. Trump replied: “I think so”. The US president affirmed that he currently has no intention of talking to Mr. Musk to mend the relationship between the two sides.

The close relationship between President Trump and Elon Musk has suddenly collapsed. Photo: Getty Images
However, Mr. Trump said he had not thought about suspending the StarLink satellite internet projects or SpaceX rocket launches that the US government had signed with Mr. Musk’s companies.

Tensions between President Trump and billionaire Musk reached a peak last week after statements showing major disagreements between the two sides around the US government’s budget spending bill. Previously, the Tesla CEO officially ended his role in the US government at the end of May. Mr. Musk also declared that it was time for a new political party in the US “that represents 80% of the population”.

The spending bill is the centerpiece of President Trump’s domestic policy agenda and is expected to shape his second term in the White House. Independent analysts warned that the bill would increase the deficit by nearly $4,000 billion over a decade. Mr Musk’s opposition is expected to complicate efforts to pass the bill in Congress, where Republicans hold slim majorities in both the House and Senate. However, in a statement on June 7, President Trump expressed confidence that the bill would be passed before the Fourth of July.