Trump warns Musk could face ‘serious consequences’ if he backs Democratic candidates

Published connected 08/06/2025 - 0:20 GMT+2•Updated 6:42

US President Donald Trump connected Saturday made clear he was not willing successful repairing nan narration pinch his erstwhile state and run benefactor Elon Musk, informing Musk could look “serious consequences” if he tries to backmost nan opposition.

In a telephone question and reply pinch NBC's Kristen Welker, Trump said that he has nary volition of reconciling pinch Musk. And, erstwhile asked specifically if he thought his narration pinch nan mega-billionaire CEO of Tesla and SpaceX was over, Trump responded, “I would presume so, yeah.”

“I’m excessively engaged doing different things,” Trump continued. “You know, I won an predetermination successful a landslide. I gave him a batch of breaks agelong earlier this happened. I gave him breaks successful my first management and saved his life successful my first administration. I person nary volition of speaking to him.”

The US president besides issued a informing amid chatter that Musk could backmost Democratic lawmakers and candidates successful nan 2026 midterm elections.

“If he does, he’ll person to salary nan consequences for that,” Trump told NBC, though he declined to stock what those consequences would be. Musk’s businesses person galore lucrative national contracts.

The latest comes aft a spectacular fallout successful nan narration betwixt nan US president and nan world's richest man complete Trump's fund measure that Musk began to criticise connected his societal media level X earlier successful nan week.

Musk warned that nan measure would summation nan national shortage and called it a “disgusting abomination.”

According to nan nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, nan measure would slash spending and taxes but besides time off immoderate 10.9 cardinal much group without wellness security and spike deficits by $2.4 trillion complete nan decade.

On Thursday, Trump criticised Musk's beardown guidance to his “big beautiful bill” pending earlier Congress, and earlier long, he and Musk began trading bitter individual attacks connected societal media, sending nan White House and GOP legislature leaders scrambling to measure nan fallout.

As nan back-and-forth intensified, Musk suggested Trump should beryllium impeached and claimed without grounds that nan authorities was concealing accusation astir nan president’s relation pinch infamous pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, a declare nan Tesla leader appeared to person walked backmost from by deleting his tweet astir Epstein connected Saturday.

Speaking successful an question and reply pinch “ manosphere” comedian Theo Von, US Vice President JD Vance tried to downplay nan feud. He said Musk was making a “huge mistake” going aft Trump, calling him an “emotional guy” getting frustrated.

“I dream that yet Elon comes backmost into nan fold. Maybe that’s not imaginable now because he’s gone truthful nuclear,” Vance said.

Vance called Musk an “incredible entrepreneur said that Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, which sought to trim authorities spending and laid disconnected aliases pushed retired thousands of workers, was “really good.”

The US Vice President said nan bill's cardinal extremity was not to trim spending but to widen nan 2017 taxation cuts approved successful Trump’s first term.

“It’s a bully bill,” Vance said. “It’s not a cleanable bill.”