Trump-Musk fallout: White House steps in, arranges call for possible truce

Former DOGE chief Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump had exchanged barbs with each other after Musk criticised Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' in a recent interview

Hours after US President Donald Trump and Billionaire Elon Musk engaged in a war of words publicly, hinting a fallout between the two, signs of truce are now emerging, Politico reported.   

White House aides have now scheduled a call between Trump and Musk on Friday (local time) to broker peace between the two men. This came after the White House officials tried persuading Trump not to criticise Musk publicly.

 

The report suggests that Trump projected nonchalance when asked about the ongoing feud between the two men, who were once the closest allies of each other. He said, “Oh, it’s okay”, adding, “It’s going very well, never done better.” 

 

When asked about his favourability ratings, Trump said, “The numbers are through the roof, the highest polls I’ve ever had, and I have to go.”

 

Former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) chief Elon Musk and Donald Trump exchanged barbs with each other after Musk criticised Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ in an interview with CBS, a day before his exit from his role as a temporary government official. While Trump remained silent after Musk's criticism, he broke the silence on Thursday when he openly expressed his disappointment with Musk, adding that he is unsure of having a good relationship with Musk anymore.

 

 

As Musk raged about the cost of legislation that is projected to add $2.4 trillion to the deficit, Trump tempered some of his commentary on his social media platform after the White House aides urged him. Trump's aides also advised him to focus on the bill and getting it cleared through the Senate, instead of engaging with Musk. 

Following the advice of Trump’s aides, one of his posts on Truth Social seemingly showed restraint. He wrote, “I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago. This is one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress.”

 

However, Musk, on the other hand, continued with his attack, accusing Trump of being “in the Epstein files” and announcing the decommissioning of Dragon spacecraft. He also criticised Trump’s reciprocal tariffs imposed on more than 100 countries, adding that they will lead to a recession in the US in the second half of the year. He also claimed that Trump should be impeached.