Assets linked to US President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk crashed on Thursday as the former allies insulted each other online.
Trump’s eponymous memecoin fell about 10% in intraday trading, to $9.66. Tesla stock, meanwhile, fell 14%.
The billionaires’ fraying relationship burst into full view on Thursday, with Trump lashing out at Musk over the executive’s vocal opposition to a Republican-led spending bill.
Echoing an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office, Musk has repeatedly said the Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act would dramatically increase the US debt.
Trump, in turn, accused Musk of lashing out because the bill would strip a federal tax credit for electric vehicles, including those manufactured by Tesla.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump said Thursday on his social media platform, Truth Social.
“I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
Musk’s businesses are major recipients of government largesse, according to an analysis by The Washington Post.
Musk, meanwhile, called Trump ungrateful. The world’s richest man donated hundreds of millions of dollars to Trump and Congressional Republicans ahead of the 2024 elections.
“Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,” Musk wrote on his social media platform, X.
Later, Musk alleged Trump was named in unpublished documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Musk also alleged the president had prevented the publication of those documents.
Trump is among many prominent figures named in the so-called Epstein Files that have already been made public. None suggest the president did anything illegal.
Thursday’s clash capped off a stunning breakup.
After the November election, Musk reportedly spent time at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, helping the president-elect staff his administration-to-be.
Once Trump took office, he tasked Musk with slashing government spending.
Musk fired thousands of government employees and terminated billions in federal contracts. Though critics say the cost savings have been overstated, Trump has repeatedly praised the tech executive for his efforts.
Just last week, both men appeared side by side at a White House press conference, where the president praised Musk as “one of the greatest business leaders and innovators the world has ever produced.”
