U.S. President Donald Trump has cautioned that there will be "serious consequences" if tech entrepreneur Elon Musk supports Democratic candidates opposing Republicans who endorse the GOP's extensive budget bill.
"If he does, he’ll have to face the consequences for that," Trump said during a phone interview with NBC News, but he refrained from specifying what those consequences might entail."He’ll have to face very serious consequences if he proceeds with that," he added.
The president also expressed that he has no interest in mending his relationship with Musk following a public feud that surfaced earlier this week.
When questioned about whether he believed his relationship with the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX was over, Trump responded, "I would assume so, yeah."
He remarked that he believed the ' Republican Party' is more united than ever after the fallout between the two.
Trump indicated that he has no intention of communicating with Musk in the near future. "I’m too busy with other matters," he stated, adding, "I have no intention of speaking to him."
Trump also accused Musk of showing "disrespect to the office of the President."
"I think it’s a very negative thing, as he is quite disrespectful. One cannot disrespect the office of the President," he continued.
On Thursday, Musk unleashed a series of posts on X targeting the president, including a now-deleted post that referenced the past connections between Trump and the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
"That’s referred to as ‘old news,’ it’s been old news, and it has been discussed for years," Trump remarked on Saturday. "Even Epstein’s attorney stated that I had no involvement. It’s old news.
In the days preceding their public dispute, Musk had criticized a GOP-led spending bill that the House approved last month.
In the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump addressed Musk’s criticisms, telling reporters, "I’m very disappointed because Elon was aware of the inner workings of this.
Shortly after making those remarks, Musk initiated a series of social media attacks, which included a now-deleted post advocating for Trump's impeachment and another in which he claimed that the president's tariff policies would lead to a recession later this year.
On Thursday, Trump also reacted with his own posts on Truth Social. In one of his posts, he stated, “I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago,” implying that Musk was aware of the bill's contents prior to its passage.
Additionally, he mentioned on Thursday, “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” in reference to federal contracts with SpaceX. “I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
On Saturday, June 7, Trump remarked that he hadn’t given further consideration to his suggestion about canceling the federal contracts of Musk’s companies.
“I’d be allowed to do that,” he stated, “but I have, I haven’t given it any thought.”
Trump also addressed calls from external allies, such as conservative activist Steve Bannon, who have suggested that Musk’s business activities and immigration history should be scrutinized by the federal government.
The president informed NBC News that he hasn't engaged in those discussions. “I mean it’s not something that’s on top of my mind right now" Trump said .
He further expressed skepticism regarding the idea that Musk’s opposition to the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” is threatening the bill’s likelihood of success, asserting that he’s “very confident” the bill will be approved by the Senate before July 4.