The rapid and intense bromance between two of the world’s most powerful men – Donald Trump and Elon Musk – may not have been on many people’s bingo cards, given their previous history.
While their friendship blossomed to end 2024, it eventually erupted into a red-hot wreck when Musk began to bash Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” culminating in an explosive social media spat between the two on June 5.
Though the tech billionaire became the self-titled “first buddy” to the president-elect, their relationship has not always been rosy. Before the campaign rallies, compliments, and close proximity lodgings, the pair had their fair share of public disagreements and even exchanged insults.
The powerful pair’s intense – and incredibly public – fallout comes amid rumors that Trump was already “annoyed” with his billionaire buddy. Here is a look back at their often tumultuous relationship:
November 2016
In 2016, Musk was not the biggest fan of his future bestie, stating publicly that Trump was not fit to run for the nation’s highest office.
“I feel a bit stronger that he is not the right guy. He doesn’t seem to have the sort of character that reflects well on the United States,” the billionaire told CNBC at the time.
His skepticism did not appear to last long however, after he was appointed by Trump to an economic advisory council, alongside Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, the next month following Trump’s first election win.
June 2017
The pair’s first professional relationship did not end well.
After Trump’s announcement that the U.S. would be withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement, Musk tendered his resignation from his positions on the presidential advisory boards.
“Am departing presidential councils. Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world,” Musk wrote on X, then-Twitter, and not yet under his ownership.
January 2022
Five years later, it was Trump who rekindled the relationship after describing Musk as one of the world’s “great geniuses” and likening him to Thomas Edison.
The President-elect told CNBC that the SpaceX boss was “one of our very smart people.”
Foreshadowing the present, Trump went on to say that Musk was not only good at electric cars, but “he does good at rockets, too, by the way. “I never saw where the engines come down with no wings, no anything, and they’re landing,” he said.
July 2022
That complimentary attitude was short lived, as just six months later Trump referred to Musk as “another bulls*** artist.”
Speaking about free speech at a rally in Anchorage, Alaska, Trump mused over Musk’s vow that he would buy the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, while promoting his own – the soon-to-be-infamous Truth Social.
“Elon is not going to buy Twitter… he said the other day ‘Oh, I’ve never voted for a Republican’. I said ‘I didn’t know that’. He told me he voted for me. So he’s another bulls*** artist.” Musk replied to a clip of the rally: “I don’t hate the man, but it’s time for Trump to hang up his hat & sail into the sunset.”
In another social media post he claimed that Musk would have “dropped to his knees and begged” if he had asked. “Lmaooo [laughing my *** off],” Musk responded.
November 2022
Musk’s claims were ultimately not, as Trump claimed, “bulls***” – and Musk officially completed the acquisition of the platform in October 2022.
It seemed as though the July remarks were forgiven or forgotten however, after Musk reinstated Trump’s account, reversing a ban that had kept Trump off the platform since the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
Musk made the announcement after holding a poll that asked Twitter users to click “yes” or “no” on whether Trump’s account should be reinstated. The “yes” vote won, with 51.8 percent. “The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated. Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” he wrote.
September 2023
Musk seemingly began to align more with Trump policies, including those on immigration, posting in favor of a U.S. border wall with Mexico – one of the President-elect’s most championed policies.
“We actually do need a wall and we need to require people to have some shred of evidence to claim asylum to enter, as everyone is doing that…” Musk wrote.
March 2024
Despite moving toward Trump, the billionaire tech boss was still publicly ambivalent in backing either party, announcing on X that he would not donate to a candidate in the presidential election.
July 2024
That attitude changed quickly following the attempted assassination of Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Musk endorsed Trump as a candidate seconds after he was rushed off stage by secret service agents, and it was later reported that he said Musk would commit around $45 million a month to a new pro-Trump super PAC called America PAC.
August 2024
Musk hosted Trump on X for a “conversation” that turned into a marathon ramble reminiscent of the president-elect’s campaign rallies. During the chat he suggested that Trump should form a commission focused on “government efficiency” and appoint him to it.
Later that month he posted “I am willing to serve.”
October 2024
Musk made his first public appearance with Trump after the former president returned to Butler. Bouncing onto the stage excitedly and wearing a black “Make America Great Again” cap, he told crowds: “As you can see, I’m not just MAGA — I’m dark MAGA.”
The billionaire later announced that he would give away $1 million a day to voters in swing states who have signed a petition from his America PAC to support free speech and the right to bear arms.
November 2024
Musk spent the evening with Trump and other MAGA die-hards at the president-elect’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida to watch the vote returns and the sweeping Republican victory.
Shortly after, Trump announced that Musk and his former presidential candidate rival Vivek Ramaswamy would lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE – a tongue-in-cheek reference to an internet meme favored by Musk), which will operate as an independent advisory group to cut government spending and streamline bureaucracy.
Later that month Trump traveled to Texas to witness SpaceX’s Starship launch alongside Musk – who now refers to himself as “First Buddy” – with reports also emerging that the pair spend “almost every day together.” Musk is also reported to have sat in on and even held talks with foreign leaders.
December 2024
The dynamic duo teamed up for a coordinated but ultimately unsuccessful effort to tank a stopgap government spending bill from passing in Congress, leaving both Democrats and even Republicans exhausted with the growing political influence of the world’s wealthiest person.
Resulting concerns and descriptions of the Tesla boss as “president Musk” eventually led Trump to address their relationship dynamic head-on. “No, he’s not taking the presidency,” Trump declared in a speech. “That’s not happening.”
However, the pair still appear to be somewhat inseparable. A report from The New York Times revealed that Musk spent much of the last two months since the election renting a $2,000-per-night cottage on the grounds of the president-elect’s Florida residence – which is located just several hundred feet from the main house.
But all may not be roses for long, with sources telling Mediate just before the New Year that Trump is now becoming “annoyed” with his “first buddy” following Musk’s public spat with other members of the MAGA hardcore over H1B visas.
“100 percent Trump is annoyed,” a source who worked on Trump’s re-election campaign told the outlet. “There’s a Chinese saying: ‘two tigers cannot live on one mountaintop.’”
Early 2025
Soon after Trump was elected, he announced Musk and former Republican presidential contender Vivek Ramaswamy would co-head a new “Department of Government Efficiency,” or DOGE for short, with the goal of slashing government spending.
Ramaswamy later backed out to run for governor of Ohio in 2026, and Musk took the reigns, but was not able to accomplish nearly as much as he promised.
Musk claimed to have saved the government $175 billion – a far cry from his initial target of $2 trillion – and his revised goal of $1 trillion. His cutthroat workforce reduction efforts totaled in more than 100,000 layoffs, though the Trump administration is facing legal challenges related to the cuts.
As Musk forged forward, members of Trump’s cabinet were growing tired of his meddling. Reports also emerged that the tech billionaire and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent got into an explosive West Wing brawl within earshot of President Donald Trump in the Oval Office earlier this year.
April 2025
Musk bid the White House farewell during an April 30 Cabinet meeting, saying it was “an honor to work with your incredible Cabinet.”
At the time, Musk said DOGE was able to run on its own and he was looking to spend less time in Washington, in order to focus on his companies.
May 2025
Musk and Trump seemed to sailing on smooth waters even as the two held a press conference on May 30 to mark Musk’s departure from the White House.
However, things became rocky when Musk voiced criticism of Trump’s tax and domestic policy bill, which he has nicknamed the “Big, Beautiful Bill.”
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO first criticized the bill during a CBS News interview, and later doubled down on his critiques on his social media platform, X.
June 2025
Musk stood by complaints about the bill, writing on X on June 3, “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.”
Trump lashed out at his former adviser while speaking from the White House on Thursday, June 5, telling reporters:“I’m very disappointed, because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill better than almost anybody sitting here … He knew everything about it. He had no problem with it.”
Musk soon after took to X called the allegation “false.”
“This bill was never shown to me even once and was passed in the dead of night so fast that lamost no one in Congress could even read it!” Musk wrote.
The two powerful men proceeded to trade blows from their respective social media sites – Truth Social and X – as their high-profile bromance came to an abrupt and extremely public end June 5.
“Elon was ‘wearing thin,’ I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!“ Trump wrote.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts. I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
Musk later chimed in: “Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.”
“Such ingratitude,” he added.
Musk went on to claim that Trump is in the “Epstein files” and reminded congressional Republicans that he will be around much longer than Trump.
“That is the real reason they have not been made public,” Musk wrote, signing off: “Have a good day, DJT!”
