The acrimonious social-media salvos over President Donald Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” arguably mark the most stunning turnabout within the realm of MAGA.
The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, is currently trashing the legislation demanded by President Trump and ushered to a razor-thin approval margin in the U.S. House by Speaker Mike Johnson. It would extend the 2017 tax cuts, a signature achievement of Trump’s first term, and address border security, while Democratic critics say it would gut Medicaid.
Musk posted on X that the legislation is “massive, outrageous, pork-filled” and declared it a “disgusting abomination.” Trump has dismissed what he said are “false statements are being made about ‘THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’” and has defended the measure as a “waste, fraud and abuse” slashing measure.
On June 5, Trump said he was “very disappointed” by the opposition from Musk.
“Elon and I had a great relationship,” Trump said in answer to a reporter’s question in the White House. “I don’t know if we will anymore.”
Musk-Trump feud turns bitter on social media
The president continued on social media saying Musk was “wearing thin” and “I asked him to leave.” He said Musk “just went CRAZY” when the administration “took away” the electric vehicle mandate.
Late in the day, the White House insisted the bill required $1.7 trillion in savings despite the Congressional Budget Office calculations the bill would add $2.8 trillion in debt over the next decade.
Trump then added in a Truth Social post that the “easiest way” to save taxpayer money would be to “terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.” He later wrote that, “I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago.”
Musk fired back on X, saying Trump’s assertions were “such an obvious lie. So sad.” He also wrote that without his assistance Trump would have lost to Kamala Harris in the November election and the Democrats would control the U.S. Senate.
Then he delivered a nasty blow.
“Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files. That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT!” he posted on X.
The reference is to the sex-abuse scandal involving the late Palm Beach financier Jeffrey Epstein. Trump knew Epstein but there has not been evidence or documents that tie Trump to Epstein’s abuses.
He followed that with a prediction that the “Trump tariffs will cause a recession in the second half of this year.” He agreed with another X user who called for Trump to be impeached and replaced by Vice President JD Vance.
The Musk-Trump public rift is remarkable considering it is over legislation that is both the administration’s signature measure on Capitol Hill and the issue that was central to the Tesla and Space X chief’s support for Trump in the 2024 campaign.
Why is Elon Musk against the Big Beautiful Bill?
Musk’s preoccupation with the landmark legislation, now before the U.S. Senate, deals with the $2.1 trillion that estimates say it will add to the U.S. national debt — more than 10 times the stated DOGE savings.
Musk has referred to the measure as the “Debt Slavery Bill.” He has urged his 220 million followers on X to call their senators and congressmen to warn them that “Bankrupting America is NOT ok!” and calling on them to “KILL the BILL.”
More: ‘Elon is going to get decimated:’ How Trump’s feud with the world’s richest man might end
He even derided the name of the legislation, which stems from Trump’s call on social media and in speeches for one “big, beautiful bill” that encompassed a wish list of measures on a range of policy issues.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk has said. “I don’t know if it could be both.”
President Donald Trump exits Air Force One with Elon Musk, top right, next to Melania Trump’s father, Viktor Knavs, at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida on March 7, 2025. Trump is staying at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach.
Trump disagrees. On June 2, he wrote on Truth Social a statement that attacked Democrats, but did not mention Musk by name.
He wrote: “So many false statements are being made about “THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,” but what nobody understands is that it’s the single biggest Spending Cut in History, by far! But there will be NO CUTS to Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid. In fact, they will be saved from the incompetence of the Democrats.”
Democrats have said the legislation will reduce assistance to vulnerable Americans.
“The Republican budget is a dangerous roadmap — laying the groundwork for the largest cuts to Medicaid and food assistance in U.S. history, all to fund massive tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations,” said U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel, D-West Palm Beach, after the measure passed in April. “That means millions of Americans will lose their health care and struggle to put food on the table. A responsible budget should lower costs for hardworking families. That’s what I’m fighting for.”
Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump, Musk fight over ‘big beautiful bill’ deepens. What to know
