Elon Musk’s father said it was like watching two male gorillas fighting for dominance over their troop.
But it already appears that the explosive feud between the Tesla boss and President Donald Trump might be cooling off after their high-profile spat exploded on Thursday.
By Friday evening, they both said that they wished each other well, in an easing of tensions after trading heated barbs the day prior.
Musk, and some inside the White House, have already picked the director of the Presidential Personnel Office, Sergio Gor, as their scapegoat for the row.
Reports have emerged that Gor sabotaged Musk’s friend Jared Isaacman from taking over at NASA last week.
Aside from the NASA snub, the heart of the dispute stemmed from Musk’s contempt for Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ which the billionaire said was forcing Americans into ‘Debt Slavery’.
If the bill fails to make it through the Senate, it could prove tumultuous for Trump and force him to bring Musk back in an attempt to steady the ship.
Some Republicans have already voiced their support for Musk’s outrage, saying they feel the same way about the bill. Trump could offer an olive branch to prevent a mutiny.
Musk has already shown signs of attempting to de-escalate the situation between himself and Trump
Trump speaks to reporters on board Air Force One
Trump and Musk exit the Oval Office as they depart the White House on the way to Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida on March 14, 2025
The bill is estimated to add another $3.8 trillion to the national debt, which currently stands at a whopping $36 trillion.
Conservative firebrand and Trump supporter Marjorie Taylor Greene has already aired her grievances over the bill due to a AI provision that she admits she overlooked.
Musk went public with his criticism in a series of posts on X, arguing that the spending would wipe out the efforts of his DOGE team.
The real crux of his pain, however, is said to have been Isaacman’s NASA nomination being canceled, which Trump attributed to Isaacman’s past donations to Democrats. The president even admitted that the decision had ‘upset’ Musk.
The New York Times had first reported that those inside the White House had pinned the blame on Gor.
Musk and Gor have had a sour relationship for months, stemming from what Axios described as Gor’s ‘resentment’ of Musk’s involvement in personnel issues.
Tensions came to a head in March when Musk accused Gor of leaking a story to the New York Times, according to The Washington Post.
The story in question concerned a meeting in which Musk clashed with members of Trump’s cabinet. Musk believed it was Gor who leaked it, as the story failed to mention his own criticism of Gor’s office, a source told the outlet.
The outlet said that Gor had made it clear that he was looking for a way to get back at Musk prior to him bombarding Trump with proof of Isaacman’s donations.
Trump said he pulled the nomination due to these donations – something the president knew about months ago. The move was a dent in Musk’s dreams of space including his plan to colonize Mars.
Musk, and some inside the White House, have also already started pinning the blame for the fight on director of the presidential personnel office Sergio Gor, seen here
Musk receives a golden key from U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on May 30
(L-R) Aide Walt Nauta, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, Assistant to the President Sergio Gor, and an aide, wait for U.S. President Donald Trump to board Marine One on the South Lawn
White House spokesman Steven Cheung told the Post: ‘Sergio is a vital member of the team, and he has helped President Trump put together an Administration that is second to none.
‘As a long-time advisor, there is nobody more capable of ensuring the government is staffed with people who are aligned with the mission to make America great again and work towards implementing the President’s agenda.’
Musk has already deleted a post to his X account in which he claimed Trump was named in the Jeffrey Epstein files, and his own father urged him to make amends.
Errol Musk urged his son to get back on Trump’s ‘good side,’ telling The Times of London that the two are kindred spirits.
‘In any successful group of animals, whether gorillas, elephants or human beings, the dominant males will always fight for dominance,’ Errol Musk said.
‘The problem you get with really good quality people is that the men all think they should be the general.’
He added: ‘They will have to sort it out and because Trump is the one who was elected, Elon is going to have to accept he is not going to be the general.’
The president, known for his put-downs of fellow politicians, is also fond of reconciliation and bringing former enemies back on side.
He has had contentious relationships with world leaders including the likes of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, referring to him as ‘little rocket man.’
Some believe that Gor sabotaged Musk’s friend Jared Isaacman (pictured) from taking over at NASA last week
Musk speaks with Trump as they watch the launch of the sixth test flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket on November 19, 2024 in Brownsville, Texas
Conservative firebrand and Trump supporter Marjorie Taylor Greene has already aired her grievances over the bill due to a AI provision that she admits she overlooked
Florida representative Anna Paulina Luna, seen here, has backed the bill
His barbs prompted the Supreme Leader to promise a ‘thousands-fold revenge’ against the US.
Their war of the words seemingly ended with a handshake during a summit on neutral ground in Singapore in 2018. The next year Trump traveled to North Korea.
Trump has also spoken down on the likes of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, as the two have gone from allies to enemies, and then back again over the years.
The president backed in him in his gubernatorial race, but started labeling him ‘Ron DeSanctimonious’ after the governor started to rise up the GOP ranks.
As Trump ran again for the White House, his insults against DeSantis continued until the latter dropped out of the presidential race – and endorsed Trump.
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Musk has already indicated his intent to de-escalate the situation. After announcing on Thursday that he was decommissioning his SpaceX ‘Dragon’ spacecraft, he quickly pulled a U-turn.
His retreat, while not necessarily a white flag, is a clear sign he is willing to stay on side.
If he had pulled Dragon, the US would have had to resort to using Russian spacecraft once again to piggyback into space.
Trump had also said he would be canceling loans and subsidies for Musk’s companies, but then admitted on Friday that such a move ‘would need to be fair’.
This was welcomed by Musk, who responded to a short clip of Trump making the comments by writing: ‘Fair enough’.
In the same talk with reporters, Trump added: ‘I look at everything. He’s got a lot of money. He gets a lot of subsidy. So we’ll take a look at that.’
One White House ally also told the post: ‘There’s hope that there’s going to be a reconciliation. But it’ll never be the same.’
Musk also might want to cozy back up to the president to protect his own personal wealth, after $27 billion was wiped from his net worth in a few hours after the feud went public.
On Thursday evening, Musk had already signaled he was open to de-escalating the situation. White House officials have said that there are no plans for President Trump to call Musk.