Trump Threatens to End Elon Musk’s Government Subsidies Amid Escalating Feud

The clash between two of America’s most influential figures — President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk — intensified on Thursday after Trump suggested government support for Musk’s companies should be cancelled to save money. 

In a series of posts on Truth Social, Trump said Elon was “going CRAZY” because he (Trump) decided to rollback electric vehicle (EV) mandates.

“Elon was ‘wearing thin,’ I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!” Trump wrote.

He followed up with a sharper warning:

“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”

The remarks immediately sent shockwaves through the markets, with Tesla shares dropping by more than 11.2 percent. 

Here is what you need to know

Earlier in the day, Elon Musk had taken to X (formerly Twitter) to defend his record and take credit for Trump’s political success:

“Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.” He added: “Such ingratitude.”

The rift has been brewing for days, particularly after Musk slammed the administration’s new tax and spending bill, calling it:

“A disgusting abomination… Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.”

I’m very disappointed in Elon, says Trump

Speaking to reporters earlier in the day, Trump said:

“Elon knew the inner workings of this bill, better than almost anybody sitting here… All of a sudden he had a problem, and he only developed the problem when he found out that we’re going to have to cut the EV mandate, because that’s billions and billions of dollars…”

Trump also said he had helped Musk a lot and was disappointed in the tech billionaire’s recent behavior.

Musk Denies Trump’s Claims

In direct response, Musk hit back on X:

“False, this bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that almost no one in Congress could even read it!”

The ongoing feud highlights the fraying relationship between two powerful allies-turned-critics and has already begun affecting market confidence, with analysts watching closely for further fallout.