The rapport between President Donald Trump and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, once pivotal to the 2024 campaign and the early months of Trump’s second term, has collapsed into an acrid public feud. On June 3, 2025, Musk’s denunciation of Trump’s signature “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” as a “disgusting abomination” triggered an exchange of threats. Revived personal grievances now define a conflict likely to reshape U.S. politics and cornerstone tech industries, including crypto.

How the Alliance Formed and Frayed

Musk was the single largest donor of the 2024 campaign, channeling roughly $290 million to Trump-aligned committees. The reward was swift: days after the January 20, 2025 inauguration, Trump created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) (named after Musk’s famous meme coin) and installed Musk as co-chair, praising him as “the efficiency genius” during the first cabinet meeting.

Early collaboration looked smooth. Musk joined White House photo-ops showcasing Tesla armor-ready vehicles for the Secret Service and arranged a Starlink deployment for military bases, deepening economic interdependence between his firms and Washington. Yet tensions simmered beneath the bromance. Their 2022 spat—when Trump labeled Musk a “bulls*** artist” and Musk urged him to “hang up his hat”—never fully healed. Musk’s growing frustration over stalled deregulation efforts and the GOP’s Wisconsin Supreme Court loss on 1 April 2025, despite his $23 million spend, further eroded trust.

The Bill That Broke the Alliance

Trouble burst into the open on 3 June 2025. Musk posted on X: “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination.” He argued the bill slashes EV incentives while preserving fossil-fuel breaks and piling on $3 trillion in new debt.

Trump fired back the same day in an ABC hallway gaggle, calling Musk “the man who has lost his mind.” Minutes later, he warned on Truth Social that SpaceX, Tesla and Starlink contracts could be annulled “for the good of taxpayers.” The market recoiled: Tesla shed 14 percent—about $150 billion—in two frantic sessions, while analysts flagged national-security risks if SpaceX launch schedules were disrupted.

Musk escalated, claiming in another post that “without me, Trump would have lost.” He retweeted a 2020 Epstein deposition thread, insinuating Trump “should answer questions.” Trump’s aides blasted the “smear,” and GOP leaders urged both men to stand down lest the party’s fiscal agenda implode.

Fault Lines and the Road Ahead

Several long-running irritants paved the way for this showdown. Trump’s 2022 insult stuck with Musk, who later told biographer Walter Isaacson he viewed the president as “world champion of bullshit.” Musk’s Megadonor status also bred mutual dependence and resentment: he expected policy wins—lighter regulation, Mars-friendly budgets—that never fully materialised, while Trump was disappointed with Musk scoring only half of the promised 1% reduction in government spending.

What happens next hinges on leverage. The White House is reviewing “termination for convenience” clauses in NASA, Pentagon and DoT contracts, but outright cancellation would delay crewed lunar missions and GPS-resilient broadband deployments—moves senior defense officials privately deem “untenable.” GOP strategists fear donor flight if Musk funds primary challengers; Democrats delight in the spectacle yet worry about jobs in Texas and California should federal dollars dry up.

The $TRUMP meme coin took a hit as well, with its price dropping 13% over Friday, June 6. At the moment of writing, the token sells at $10.47—way down from the pre-feud peak of $11.62—while its trade volume has declined by 21.42% over the past 24 hours. This price slump might be an unintended consequence of the scandal yet it came right before the World Liberty Financial unveiled plans to buy a substantial amount of the token.

Musk, meanwhile, hints at forming a centrist “New Frontier Party” and has paused political giving “until the bill is dead or fixed.” Advisors say he could sue over any cancelled contracts, leveraging reliance on Falcon 9 and Starship for national security launches. Trump confidants float a truce if Musk drops spending-bill attacks, but neither side shows sign of retreat: Musk tweeted a rocket emoji with the caption “Free market > pork market,” while Trump reposted a meme depicting a Tesla rolling down a hill.

With a looming House vote on the bill, Wall Street, Capitol Hill, and the crypto industry are bracing for further volatility. Whether the two power players reconcile or sever ties for good, their clash underscores a broader truth: when personal ego meets trillion-dollar policy, the fallout radiates far beyond social-media theatrics.