The relationship between Elon Musk and President Donald Trump, once one of the most talked-about partnerships in the second Trump administration, is now showing signs of serious strain. According to people close to the president, the bond that once defined key parts of White House policy is quietly unraveling, Newsweek reported.
Since Trump returned to office in January, Musk has been more than just a business ally. As head of the Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE, Musk became one of the administration’s most public faces, leading massive efforts to cut federal spending and reshaping messaging around government policy through his platform X, formerly Twitter. Trump regularly praised him as a “genius” and stood behind him even during protests targeting Tesla.
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Their connection was personal as much as political. Musk was often spotted at Mar-a-Lago during the administration’s early transition, suggesting a deeper partnership than what most cabinet officials share with a sitting president. But lately, Musk has taken a noticeable step back, and tensions between the two have started to show.
According to The Atlantic, Musk clashed with several high-profile figures in Trump’s cabinet. He reportedly disagreed with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent over IRS reforms and had heated debates with Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding the decision to eliminate USAID. Even Trump himself faced pushback from Musk, particularly after the president involved himself in Wisconsin’s Supreme Court election in April.
An unnamed Republican insider told Politico, “He’s finished, done, gone. He polls terrible. People hate him. He’d go to Wisconsin thinking he can buy people’s votes, wear the cheese hat, act like a 9-year-old… It doesn’t work. It’s offensive to people.”
Meanwhile, Musk’s shift in focus back to his tech empire appears to come with a shift in his political stance too. In a recent interview with CBS, he criticized Trump’s latest piece of legislation, which the president had proudly called a “big, beautiful bill.” Musk was blunt. “It increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing,” he said.
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“I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don’t know if it can be both. My personal opinion,” Musk added.
That quote alone shows just how far the dynamic between the two has changed. What was once a partnership based on mutual admiration and shared goals is now looking more like a tense standoff.
The divide deepened further when Musk took to social media to post his disapproval of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs. Musk’s tech companies depend on international supply chains, and the tariffs have thrown a wrench into their operations.
And in a move that completely contradicts Trump’s promotion of fossil fuels, Musk tweeted, “Compared to solar, oil is small-time.”
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