Trump hints at deporting Musk amid feud over spending bill: ‘we’ll have to take a look’
The former allies had a public falling out over the bill, with the tycoon criticising Republicans for abandoning the US in the EV and clean energy revolution
Donald Trump and Elon Musk reignited their bitter feud on Tuesday, with the US president threatening to deport the tech tycoon and strip federal funds from his businesses for criticising Trump’s flagship spending bill.
The world’s richest person was Trump’s biggest political donor in the 2024 election and became his inseparable ally during his first months back in the White House as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).
But the SpaceX and Tesla boss is now threatening to turn his riches against Trump, mulling a rival political party to challenge Republican lawmakers who vote for Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.”
Trump, 78, reacted vengefully on Tuesday. “We’ll have to take a look,” he told reporters when asked if he would consider deporting Musk, who has held US citizenship since 2002.
In reply to a post on social media featuring Trump’s deportation comments, Musk replied on Tuesday: “So tempting to escalate this. So, so tempting. But I will refrain for now.”
Trump also signalled that he could take aim at the huge contracts and subsidies that Musk’s SpaceX rocket and Starlink satellite internet businesses receive from the US government.