Trump says Musk's relationship with “serious consequences” warns if he fund Democrats

By Nandita Bose

BEDMINST, N.J. (Reuters) – Donald Trump said on Saturday that his relationship with billionaire donor Elon Musk was over, warning that if Musk ran for Republicans for the U.S. Democrats against Republicans who voted for the president’s comprehensive tax and spending bill.

In a telephone interview with NBC News, Trump declined to say what the consequences were, continuing to add that he did not discuss whether to investigate Musk.

Asked if he thinks he has a relationship with Tesla and the CEO of SpaceX ended, Trump said: “I think so.”

“No,” Trump told NBC when asked if there was any willingness to fix the relationship with Musk.

“I have no intention of talking to him,” Trump said.

However, Trump said he has not considered termination of a U.S. government contract with Musk's Starlink satellite internet or SpaceX rocket launcher.

Musk and Trump began exchanging insults this week as Musk denounced Trump's bill as “annoying and abominable.” Musk's opposition to the measure complicates efforts to pass Congress legislation, where Republicans make up only a majority in the House and Senate.

The bill narrowly passed the House last month and now in front of the Senate, Trump’s fellow Republicans are considering changes. Nonpartisan analysts estimate the measure will increase $2.4 trillion in U.S. debt in 10 years, which has worried many lawmakers, including some Republicans who are fiscal hawks.

Musk also announced that it is time to hold a new party in the United States to “represent 80% of the middle!”

Trump said on Saturday that he believes the bill will pass on the U.S. July 4 Independence Day holiday.

“Actually, yes, people who are going to vote now will now vote enthusiastically for it, and we hope it passes,” Trump told NBC.

Republicans have strongly supported Trump's moves since Trump began his presidency on January 20. Although some Republican lawmakers have commented on the news media and expressed concerns about some of Trump's choices, they have not voted on any of his policies or nominations.

Musk column removed

Musk removed some social media posts that criticized Trump, including one that expressed support for the impeachment president, and appeared to be seeking a downgrade of the public dispute, which broke out on Thursday. During his first term as president, the House of Representatives was then controlled by Democrats, and the Senate was acquitted twice.

The White House and Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the deleted position on Saturday.

People who spoke to Musk said his anger had begun to retreat and they thought he wanted to fix his relationship with Trump.

One of the X posts that Musk seems to have deleted is a response to another user: “President vs Elon. Who wins? My money is on Elon. Trump deserves to be impeached each, (Vice President) JD Vance should replace him.” Musk wrote “Yes”.

In Theo von's “Last Weekend” podcast, a dispute between Trump and Musk was recorded on Thursday and released on Saturday – Vance called Musk's criticism of Trump a “huge mistake.”

“I'm always loyal to the president, and I hope Elon will eventually come back to that. Maybe it's impossible now because he's gone so nuclear. But I hope it's.”

Trump will compete in the Ultimate Battle Championship in New Jersey on Saturday. He has participated in two UFC mixed martial arts battle cards with Musk since winning the second election. Musk is not expected to attend on Saturday.

Musk is the richest man in the world, spending nearly $300 million in last year's U.S. election and retaining a majority in the House of Representatives for Republicans and making a majority in the Senate.

Trump named Musk, who worked to reduce the size of the federal labor force and cut spending, praised him at the White House just a week ago for being the head of the government's efficiency division. Musk cut only half of total spending by 1%, far from cutting the $2 trillion axe plan compared to the federal budget.

(Reported by Nandita Bose at Bedminster, other reports by Ottawa’s Ismail Shakil, written by Nandita Bose and Patricia Zengerle; Editors of Deepa Babington, Will Dunham and Michelle Nichols)