Latest news with #subsidies
Gizmodo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Gizmodo
Elon Musk Swipes Back at Trump After Apparent Peace Offering
Yesterday, President Trump seemed to offer an olive branch to his former 'first buddy,' Elon Musk, amidst their ongoing spat. In a post made to Truth Social, Trump claimed that he didn't wish any harm on Elon or his businesses. 'Everyone is stating that I will destroy Elon's companies by taking away some, if not all, of the large-scale subsidies he receives from the U.S. Government. This is not so! I want Elon, and all businesses within our Country, to THRIVE, in fact, THRIVE like never before!' Trump wrote. Trump's screed may have been a response to a recent article published by the Wall Street Journal that claimed the Trump administration was interested in potentially cancelling some of the federal contracts associated with Musk's rocket company, SpaceX. The WSJ story notes that only days after Trump floated the idea of cutting ties with Musk's companies, 'the Trump administration initiated a review of SpaceX's contracts with the federal government.' The review was reportedly ordered by a senior official at the General Services Administration. Not long after Trump's supposedly conciliatory post, Musk replied on his own social media platform, X. 'The 'subsidies' he's talking about simply do not exist,' Musk wrote. 'DJT has already removed or put an expiry date on all sustainable energy support while leaving massive oil & gas subsidies untouched. SpaceX won the NASA contracts by doing a better job for less money. Moving those contracts to other aerospace companies would leave astronauts stranded and taxpayers on the hook for twice as much!' So much for a truce between America's two oligarchic doofuses. The crumbling of the Trump-Elon bromance is one for the literal history books—but it would also probably make a really good comedic movie, as well. The story of how an aged former reality TV star and his campaign sugar daddy fell in—and then out of—like with one another has been chortle-inducing at every turn. Take note, Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Musk is likely still sore about Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which nixed the federal government's EV mandate. That mandate notably provided a key revenue source for Elon's company, Tesla, via the regulatory credit market. The regulatory credit market stemmed from state and federal fines against automakers who didn't adhere to certain environmental standards. CNN notes that the plan for OBBB was to roll 'back those standards' and strip 'states of the power to set their own emissions rules,' which would have the net result of destroying the 'market for those credit sales.'
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
TACO Trump Retreats on Musk Threats as Epstein Firestorm Grows
President Donald Trump has taken to Truth Social to extend a surprising olive branch to Elon Musk, vowing he doesn't plan to 'destroy' the Tesla CEO's empire and actually wants him 'to thrive.' The shift in tone comes amid an explosive public feud that saw Musk accusing Trump of appearing in Jeffrey Epstein's secret files—a claim that Trump has tried desperately to deflect. 'Everyone is stating that I will destroy Elon's companies by taking away some, if not all, of the large scale subsidies he receives from the U.S. Government. This is not so!' Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday, adding, 'I want Elon, and all businesses within our Country, to THRIVE, in fact, THRIVE like never before!' Just weeks earlier, Musk asserted on X that Trump 'is in the Epstein files' and said that was 'the real reason they have not been made public' Damning new reports suggest that Attorney General Pam Bondi informed Trump in May that his name appears in the documents—reports the White House has dismissed as 'fake news.' Musk taunted Trump over what he called a 'hoax,' urging him to 'just release the files as promised.' Their feud escalated into public threats, with Trump warning Musk he might have to 'head back home to South Africa,' and vowing to scrutinize SpaceX and Starlink contracts. Trump's reversal—framing Musk's success as patriotic—comes after subsidy cuts to Tesla force the CEO into a corner. Musk rattled Tesla's stock price by warning investors that the EV maker is in for a rough ride because of the subsidy slash. In a bleak second-quarter earnings call, he said that the company is in a 'weird transition period.' 'We probably could have a few rough quarters,' he said, according to the Financial Times. Since Trump's bill has passed, meanwhile, Tesla has felt the squeeze. The legislation scrapped a variety of incentives tied to renewable energy. There are growing fears at Tesla that the company will not meet demand if buyers rush to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit before it expires in September. CFO Vaibhav Taneja revealed that the company has also been hit with $300 million in extra tariff-related expenses during the second quarter alone. Musk is yet to publicly respond to Trump's latest overture. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Musk Immediately Throws Trump's Suck Up Attempt Back in His Face
Elon Musk rejected a peace offering from Donald Trump after the president revealed he was not planning to 'destroy' the Tesla CEO's empire. In the midst of an on-again, off-again, explosive public feud that culminated in Musk dropping the bomb that 'Donald Trump is in the Epstein files,' the president threw out a surprise olive branch. 'I want Elon, and all businesses within our Country, to THRIVE, in fact, THRIVE like never before!' he wrote on Truth Social on Thursday. The post was being seen as an effort to find a truce between Trump and one-time close ally Musk, whose relationship has spectacularly broken down. Trump also spoke about not taking away 'the large scale subsidies he [Musk] receives from the U.S. Government.' Musk, who stepped down from a role in Trump's administration overseeing the Department of Government Efficiency, wasn't buying it. He responded to Trump's post by taking it apart bit by bit. 'The 'subsidies' he's talking about simply do not exist. DJT has already removed or put an expiry date on all sustainable energy support while leaving massive oil & gas subsidies untouched,' he said, referring to Trump by his initials. That appeared to be a reference to the fact that Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' has scrapped the $7,500 federal EV tax credit that benefited Tesla. Musk moved on to his other company, SpaceX, which he said 'won the NASA contracts by doing a better job for less money.' 'Moving those contracts to other aerospace companies would leave astronauts stranded and taxpayers on the hook for twice as much!' Musk contended. Musk also sarcastically clapped back against Trump's promise not to 'destroy Elon Musk's companies.' In response to a tweet about the news, he wrote: 'Phew.' In June, Trump publicly warned that axing Musk's contracts would save the country billions of dollars. 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,' he said. Just weeks earlier, Musk asserted on X that Trump 'is in the Epstein files' and said that was 'the real reason they have not been made public.' He later deleted the post. Damning new reports suggest that Attorney General Pam Bondi informed Trump in May that his name appears in the documents—reports the White House has dismissed as 'fake news.' The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Trump fires back at reports he's trying to destroy Musk's companies
President Donald Trump shot back at reports that he will try to destroy the companies of former best friend Elon Musk, clarifying his intent when it comes to the world's richest man. Trump had previously threatened to take away the billions in government contracts that Musk's various companies hold. The duo had a very public fallout over Trump's one big beautiful bill, which resulted in each man making threats against the other But the president now says he wants Musk to 'thrive.' 'Everyone is stating that I will destroy Elon's companies by taking away some, if not all, of the large scale subsidies he receives from the U.S. Government. This is not so!,' the president wrote on Truth Social. 'I want Elon, and all businesses within our Country, to THRIVE, in fact, THRIVE like never before! The better they do, the better the USA does, and that's good for all of us,' Trump wrote. The clarification came after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked in her briefing on Wednesday if Trump supports federal agencies contracting with Musk's artificial intelligence company, xAI. 'I don't think so, no,' she replied and then added she would speak to the president about the matter. xAI won a contract for up to $200 million with the Department of Defense, alongside Anthropic, Google and OpenAI, last week. Additionally, this week, xAI unveiled a suite of products for U.S. government customers, which it refers to as Grok for Government. Trump and Musk have had a hot and cold relationship since the Tesla founder left government service in May. After his departure, Musk publicly turned on Trump's signature bill, complaining it would increase the country's debt and undo much of the savings his Department of Government Efficiency had sought. Trump was furious at Musk's public criticism and, at one point, responded: 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.' 'We might have to put DOGE on Elon. You know what DOGE is? DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon,' Trump added. Musk, for his part, threatened to start a third political party to go after Republican candidates and posted on his X account that the reason the Jeffrey Epstein files hadn't been released because Trump is in them. He later took that post down.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Trump Says He Wants Musk To ‘Thrive' As Epstein Backlash Swells
President Donald Trump said he wants his former ally-turned-foe Elon Musk to 'thrive' and denied he's considering docking Musk's government business on Thursday—as Musk has repeatedly called out Trump over his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. President Donald Trump takes to the stage at an AI summit hosted by All‑In Podcast and Hill & Valley ... More Forum at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium on July 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by) Getty Images 'Everyone is stating that I will destroy Elon's companies by taking away some, if not all, of the large scale subsidies he receives from the U.S. government. This is not so!' Trump wrote on Truth Social,' insisting he wants Musk to 'THRIVE like never before!' Trump made the comments after Reuters reported earlier in the week the Trump administration is considering alternative contractors for the Golden Dome missile defense system to Musk's Space X amid Trump's feud with Musk. Trump has also directly threatened Musk's government subsidies, writing on Truth Social in early July Musk 'may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far' and without the money, 'would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.' The remarks come as Trump and his administration have made a series of moves widely viewed as an effort to detract from criticism of his administration's handling of documents detailing the Justice Department's Epstein investigation. The president posted about Musk hours after the Wall Street Journal revealed Wednesday the Justice Department told Trump he was mentioned in the Epstein files—a claim Musk made amid his fallout with Trump last month, but has not mentioned it again in the wake of the Journal report. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Attorney General Pam Bondi told Trump in May his name appeared in the documents multiple times, citing unnamed senior administration officials. Trump's ties to Epstein are garnering renewed attention as the president has urged his supporters to move on from the controversy amid backlash over the Justice Department's refusal to release the Epstein documents. The Journal also revealed last week that Trump sent Epstein a sexually suggestive 50th birthday card in 2003 that referenced a 'wonderful secret' the two share. Trump denied writing the card and sued the Journal over the report. His spokesperson Steven Cheung called Wednesday's report that Bondi told him he was in the files 'another fake news story.' Key Background Musk and Trump's months-long friendship devolved into an explosive breakup in June shortly after Musk ended his role leading the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk's primary criticism of Trump was the amount his signature policy bill would add to the government debt, though Musk has also repeatedly trolled Trump over the Epstein files. Musk suggested House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called an early recess in Congress earlier this week to avoid a vote whether to release the Epstein files because Trump might be in them, tweeting there is 'only one reason' to avoid the vote. Earlier this month, after the Justice Department said it wouldn't release any additional Epstein files, Musk called the move a 'cover up (obviously)' because 'many powerful people want that list suppressed.' Musk Claimed Trump Was In The Epstein Files In June—And Has Trolled Him Ever Since (Forbes) Here's Every Known Link Between Trump And Epstein: 'Little Black Book', Plane Rides And Trump's 1993 Wedding (Forbes) Everything Trump Has Done That Critics Say Is Meant To Distract From Epstein Scandal (Forbes)
