Trump Warns Musk Not to Back Democrats

President says he has no plans to mend fences with former ally
Posted Jun 7, 2025 2:37 PM CDT
'Very Serious Consequences' if Musk Helps Democrats: Trump
President Donald Trump, right, presents a key to Elon Musk during a news conference in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 30, 2025, in Washington.   (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

When Elon Musk broke with President Trump over his "outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill," the billionaire hinted at opposing Republicans who voted for it in the 2026 elections. After thinking about that possibility for a few days, Trump warned his former ally on Saturday that funding Democrats in congressional races would cost him, per the Washington Post. "If he does, he'll have to pay the consequences for that," the president said in an NBC News interview. "He'll have to pay very serious consequences if he does that," Trump later repeated.

Trump didn't specify what the consequences would be. Still, he expressed no inclination to repair the broken relationship with Musk, saying he assumes they're finished. "I gave him a lot of breaks, long before this happened. I gave him breaks in my first administration and saved his life in my first administration," Trump said without explanation. "I have no intention of speaking to him." After earlier threatening to cancel Musk's government contracts, Trump said Saturday that he'd given that idea no more thought, though he said, "I'd be allowed to do that."

The president contended that Musk's opposition has helped unite the Republican Party behind the legislation. "I think, actually, Elon brought out the strengths of the bill because people that weren't as focused started focusing on it, and they see how good it is," the president added. "So in that sense, there was a big favor." Some of Musk's most provocative posts Thursday on X have since been taken down, per the Hill. At the end of the NBC interview, Trump said, "I think it's a shame that he's so depressed and so heartbroken." He didn't say whether he thinks that might be the cause or the result of their feud, per the Post. (More President Trump stories.)

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