As Elon Musk continues to bash the Republican reconciliation bill, President Donald Trump is threatening consequences against the man who dumped hundreds of millions of dollars into his 2024 campaign, and who just months ago was effectively operating as his co-president.
Musk’s opposition with the bill led to an explosive war of words between him and Trump last month. The Tesla billionaire renewed his criticism this week, writing on Monday that if “this insane spending bill passes,” he would form his own political party, the ”America Party,” the next day. “Our country needs an alternative to the Democrat-Republican uniparty so that the people actually have a VOICE,” Musk wrote.
Musk added that he would ensure that every member of Congress who “campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history” would “lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth.”
In a Truth Social post early Tuesday morning, Trump blamed Musk’s outburst on his administration’s move to revoke state-level electric vehicle mandates, which heavily benefit electric car companies like Tesla.
“Elon Musk knew, long before he so strongly Endorsed me for President, that I was strongly against the EV Mandate. It is ridiculous, and was always a major part of my campaign,” the president wrote. “Elon may get more subsidies than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.”
The president added that “perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look,” at Musk’s companies and government contracts because there was “BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!”
While speaking to reporters before heading to Florida hours later, Trump was asked if he was going to deport Musk. “I don’t know, we’ll have to take a look,” the president mused, adding that the administration “might have to put DOGE on Elon.”
“You know what DOGE is?” he asked the reporter, referring to Musk’s supposed cost-cutting operation that gutted critical services across the government in a matter of months. “The monster that might have to go back and eat Elon,” Trump continued. “Wouldn’t that be terrible?”
Musk responded on X that it was “so tempting to escalate this. So, so tempting. But I will refrain for now.”
The GOP’s massive reconciliation package is currently being debated in the Senate through a record breaking vote-a-rama session that became the longest in the chamber’s history on Monday night. If passed, the legislation is expected to strip millions of their health care coverage, make social safety net programs less accessible, and worst of all — at least according to Musk — increase the national debt by about $4 trillion over 10 years.
Trump indicated on Tuesday that he was “hopeful” for a full vote in the Senate before the end of the day.
