Elon Musk has expressed regret over a series of harsh social media posts directed at President Donald Trump, marking a potential de-escalation in what had become a high-profile public feud.
I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 11, 2025
“I regret some of my posts about President [Donald Trump] last week. They went too far,” Musk posted on Wednesday via his social media platform X.
The statement comes days after Musk and Trump, once close political allies, publicly clashed over a controversial spending bill, which Musk described as a “disgusting abomination.” The legislation, a mix of sweeping tax cuts and increased defense spending, has stirred division within Republican ranks. Some lawmakers opposing the bill had encouraged Musk to fund primary challengers against those who supported it.
In response, Trump warned that Musk could face “very serious consequences” if he acted on those calls, telling NBC News that Musk had been “very disrespectful.”
The rift widened after Musk claimed without evidence that Trump was featured in unreleased government files related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. “Time to drop the really big bomb: [Trump] is in the Epstein files,” Musk wrote in a now-deleted X post. “That is the real reason they have not been made public.”
Though the White House dismissed the allegations as baseless, the accusation intensified the row. Trump later threatened to cut off government subsidies and contracts to Musk’s companies — Tesla and SpaceX — which collectively have received tens of billions of dollars in federal support.
Despite the tension, both figures have recently adopted a more conciliatory tone. “I just wish him well,” Trump told reporters on Friday. Musk responded with a brief post: “Likewise.”
Their fallout followed Musk’s departure from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a cost-cutting agency within the administration, where he served for just over four months. While they appeared to part ways amicably, tensions flared soon after, with Musk claiming: “Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.”
Vice President JD Vance said he hoped Musk would “eventually come back into the fold” despite going “nuclear,” while former adviser Steve Bannon called for Musk’s deportation.
Musk has since deleted several of his critical posts and re-shared some of Trump’s positions on immigration and civil unrest, hinting at a shift toward reconciliation. Whether the billionaire entrepreneur and the president can fully mend ties remains to be seen, but Musk’s public regrets have opened the door for a possible political reset.