A fiery dispute between Elon Musk and President Trump reignited on Tuesday, marking a resurgence of their conflict over a Republican policy bill that had previously strained their political alliance.
On Tuesday morning, following several posts from Musk expressing his displeasure with the bill, Trump escalated the rhetoric, suggesting he might consider deporting Musk, a U.S. citizen born in South Africa.
This renewed hostilities were unexpected, especially after Musk had reached out to Trump in mid-June to apologize for some of his online criticisms.
During a press interaction on the South Lawn of the White House, when asked about the possibility of deporting Musk, Trump responded, “I don’t know. We’ll have to take a look.”
Trump also made a remark about Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, saying, “DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon. Wouldn’t that be terrible?” He reiterated his belief that Musk's opposition to the policy bill stemmed from its potential reduction of subsidies for electric vehicles, including those produced by Tesla.
Earlier on Truth Social, Trump highlighted the potential savings from reviewing the subsidies received by Musk's companies, stating there was “BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED.” While Trump has previously threatened to target these subsidies, he had not done so in recent weeks, focusing on other issues instead.
Musk's recent posts, including calls for a new political party and primaries against congressional Republicans, appear to have drawn Trump's attention and contributed to the rekindling of their dispute.