Elon Musk has hinted at a potential de-escalation in his public feud with Donald Trump, following a recent and very public falling out.
The Tesla CEO suggested he might reconsider his previously stated intention to decommission the Dragon spacecraft (a SpaceX creation) in a dialogue on his social media platform, X. He also responded favorably to a plea from fellow billionaire Bill Ackman urging him to “make peace” with the former US president.
According to a report by Politico, the White House has scheduled a call with Musk on Friday, aiming to mediate a peaceful resolution after both men engaged in a war of words on Thursday.
This ongoing dispute, played out across social media and during a Trump White House appearance, saw the former president express that he was “very disappointed in Elon” because of Musk’s criticism of his tax and spending bill.
Musk countered by suggesting that the former president’s trade policies could trigger a recession, and also brought up Trump’s past associations with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Musk’s initial response to Trump’s threat to potentially cancel his US government contracts was a post on X stating he would retire the Dragon spacecraft, which is utilized by NASA.
However, after an X user advised both parties to “cool off,” Musk replied: “Good advice. Ok, we won’t decommission Dragon.”
Musk also seemed to extend an olive branch, responding to hedge fund owner Ackman’s call for Trump and Musk to “make peace for the benefit of our great country” with: “You’re not wrong.”
also reported on the potential peace call between Musk and the White House, stating that Trump’s advisors had been working to convince the former president to soften his public criticism of the Tesla owner before arranging the phone conversation planned for Friday.
In a brief interview with Trump regarding Thursday’s Musk situation, Politico reported that the former president demonstrated “an air of nonchalance” regarding the dispute. “Oh it’s OK,” Trump stated, when asked about the argument. “It’s going very well, never done better.”
Referring to his approval ratings, Trump added: “The numbers are through the roof, the highest polls I’ve ever had and I have to go.”
also indicated that Trump’s aides had encouraged him to prioritize the passage of his tax and spending bill through the Senate rather than engaging in conflict with Musk, with one of his Truth Social posts displaying a less confrontational attitude.
“I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform, before adding that the tax cut legislation was one of the “Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress”.
