It was only a few months ago that Elon Musk said, “I love @realDonaldTrump as much as a straight man can love another man.” Now? He’s accusing the former president of hiding Epstein ties and threatening to pull the plug on NASA’s only ride to space.
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Yes, really.
The long-simmering tension between the two billionaires officially blew up Thursday in what Musk might call a “rapid unscheduled disassembly” — SpaceX’s own term for explosive failure. This one happened on Earth. And it’s already sending shockwaves through both politics and the markets.
Trump Threatens Contracts, Musk Threatens Space
It started when Musk criticized Trump’s $2.4 trillion tax and spending bill, calling it a “disgusting abomination.” Trump fired back on Truth Social, threatening to terminate “Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts” — which total around $21 billion across Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX.
Musk responded on X, saying he would begin decommissioning the Dragon spacecraft, currently the only vehicle carrying U.S. astronauts to and from the International Space Station. That’s not a casual threat — SpaceX is a core NASA partner, and replacing it quickly isn’t really an option.
He also liked a post calling for Trump’s impeachment.
The EV Breakup Gets Personal (and Political)
Trump told reporters he’s “very disappointed” in Musk and claimed he asked him to step down as an advisor. He also accused Musk of going “CRAZY” after the administration eliminated EV credits — a decision Musk had allegedly been aware of for months.
Musk wasn’t having it. “Such an obvious lie. So sad,” he wrote.
He then dropped a bomb of his own: “@realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files… Have a nice day, DJT!”
The White House declined to comment.
Politics, Subsidies, and a Black Eye on the Way Out
According to Trump, the split isn’t just about electric vehicles. He cited multiple reasons, including a pulled nomination for Musk ally Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, and said, “I think he misses the place,” referring to Musk’s frequent Oval Office visits.
He even brought up Musk’s now-infamous black eye: “Do you want a little makeup?” Trump said he offered. Musk reportedly got it while “horsing around” with his son.
While the president gave his explanations, Musk was still firing posts:
“Keep the EV/solar incentive cuts… but ditch the MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK.”
“Slim and beautiful is the way,” he wrote, mocking Trump’s own branding of the bill as One Big Beautiful Bill.
Markets React, and It’s Not Pretty
Tesla stock fell over 14% on Thursday, with losses continuing after hours. Investors are clearly uneasy with Musk dragging Tesla into political wars. Meanwhile, shares of Trump Media dropped 8%.
It’s unclear where this goes next. But it’s safe to say that the Trump-Musk axis, once backed by billions of dollars and mutual amplification, has now broken into full public spectacle.
And unlike a SpaceX test launch, this one wasn’t supposed to blow up.
Is TSLA a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
According to TipRanks data, Tesla currently holds a Hold rating based on 37 Wall Street analyst reviews over the past three months. Out of those, 16 analysts rate the stock a Buy, 10 say Hold, and 11 recommend Sell — reflecting a fairly split view.
The average 12-month TSLA price target is $282.70, which implies a 0.7% downside from the current price.
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