The bromance between billionaire Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump may be short-lived, if some in the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement have their way.
NBC News reports that members of Trump’s inner circle are growing fed up with the antics of the Tesla CEO, with one Trump associate accusing Musk of “behaving as if he’s a co-president.”
Trump has kept Musk close to him since his win on Tuesday. Musk and his son were perhaps the lone non-Trump family figures in a celebratory election night group photo posted by the president-elect’s granddaughter. (Incoming First Lady Melania Trump was conspicuously absent from the photo.)
Musk has also participated in Trump’s calls with world leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
And last night, Trump announced the appointment of Musk to a newly created Department of Government Efficiency, whose acronym shares the name with the tech billionaire’s favorite memecoin.
The War Within
Musk provided crucial support to the Trump campaign, including more than $100 million in funding for its outreach efforts through his America PAC. He even camped out in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, which Trump narrowly won.
An unnamed figure close to Trump told NBC News that Musk is “taking lots of credit for the president’s victory.” Musk was indeed a factor in the Trump win, including its appeal to young men. The leaks from within the Trump organization likely reflect jockeying for influence in the incoming administration.
A source told NBC News that Musk “wants to be seen as having [a] say in everything.”
Trump’s presidency and three campaigns were notorious for in-fighting — some of which was instigated by the current president-elect himself.
Before his alleged suicide, convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein told journalist Michael Wolff that Trump regularly played those close to him off against each other. Epstein, said of Trump: “He will tell 10 people ‘[Steve] Bannon’s a scumbag’ and ‘[Reince] Priebus is not doing a good job’ and ‘Kellyanne [Conway] has a big mouth. What do you think?’”
How Long Will It Last?
The White House may not have enough space for the egos of the world’s richest man and the world’s most powerful man. If Musk, as a detractor claimed to NBC News, is indeed “trying to make President Trump feel indebted to him,” that will likely result in a backlash from the former New York resident.
The two men have clashed in the past. In 2022, Musk said Trump was too old to run for president. Trump mocked the SpaceX CEO as desperate for federal subsidies.
Like many celebrity marriages, this partnership appears destined to fail.
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