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President Trump responded this week to SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s criticism of the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” just days after the innovator left his role as a top advisor and leader of DOGE.
On Thursday, during a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, President Trump took questions from the media, taking time to reply to Musk’s very public opposition to the legislation.
“I’ve always liked Elon, that’s why I was very surprised,” Trump said. “…I’d rather have him criticize me than the bill.”
Trump described the legislation as the “biggest tax cut in history,” to the tune of about $1.6 trillion.”
Musk, for his part, has launched a social media campaign against the legislation, urging Republicans to vote against it. He has argued that it will increase the deficit by trillions, even going so far as to nickname the legislation, “The Big Ugly Bill” on X.
President Trump told the press that Musk is upset about the legislation because they removed the electric vehicle tax credit benefits. “They’re having a hard time with electric vehicles and they want us to pay billions of dollars in subsidies,” Trump said.
The president said Musk was aware of the details of the bill “from the beginning.” He also noted that Musk’s recommendation of Jared Isaacman to head NASA was “inappropriate,” hinting that Musk was “upset” about that, too.
Trump said Isaacman was a “Democrat” and argued that because Republicans won the election in 2024, they weren’t obligated to pick someone who was politically divergent from the GOP agenda.
“Look, Elon and I had a great relationship, I don’t know if we will anymore,” Trump said.
On X, Musk has ramped up his rhetoric, claiming that “Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.” He even accused Trump of “ingratitude,” sparking controversy online among supporters of both Musk and Trump.
Such harsh words from a man who was smiling in the Oval Office just a week ago seem like a sudden departure, one that the president said “surprised” him.
The president noted how “wonderful” the sendoff for the innovator had been last week, and even pointed out that Musk often wore a hat emblazoned with the words “TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING.”
“And I am right about the Great Big Beautiful Bill,” Trump asserted.