President Donald Trump has no intention of speaking with Elon Musk despite earlier reports that White House officials were preparing a call to ease tensions between the two men, a senior administration official said Friday. The statement follows a public war of words between the president and the Tesla and SpaceX CEO over Trump's proposed tax legislation and federal contract threats.
"There are no calls on the books, at least not now," a White House official told NBC News. Chief of Staff Susie Wiles added, "There are no plans for that today," contradicting an earlier report from Politico that suggested a phone call was scheduled for Friday. Another official added, "There could be anything - I'd like to de-escalate a very unfortunate situation."
The conflict intensified Thursday after Musk denounced the Trump administration's sweeping tax and spending bill, calling it a "disgusting abomination" that would add trillions to the national debt. The bill, still pending in the Senate, is central to the president's economic agenda. Musk resigned last week from his role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency, where he had overseen efforts to reduce federal spending.
In a Truth Social post, Trump responded by threatening to cut federal contracts with Musk's companies. "The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts," the president wrote.
Tesla shares plunged 14% on Thursday, erasing approximately $150 billion in market value-the worst single-day loss in the company's history. The stock rebounded slightly in Friday's premarket trading after news surfaced that a Trump-Musk call was being considered.
Musk retaliated on X, stating, "Without me, Trump would have lost the election," referring to the nearly $300 million he spent backing Trump and other Republicans in last year's election cycle. He also accused Trump of "lying" about pushing him out of the administration, claiming instead that he resigned.
In a separate post, Musk appeared to back a suggestion that Trump should be impeached, replying "Yes" to a user's post supporting the move. While such action is highly improbable given the Republican majority in both chambers of Congress, the exchange underscored the dramatic rupture between the two former allies.
The feud also threatens to disrupt U.S. space operations. Musk declared Thursday that SpaceX would begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft-currently the only American vehicle capable of ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station-due to the administration's threats. He later reversed course but not before raising alarms over national security implications.
Trump, when asked by CNN about Musk, said, "I'm not even thinking about Elon. He's got a problem. The poor guy's got a problem." He added, "No. I won't be speaking to him for a while I guess, but I wish him well."
