Elon Musk is ready to wage all-out war on MAGA and anyone who stands in the way of its efforts to destroy President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful” budget bill.
As the feud between the world’s richest man and the world’s most powerful man takes an increasingly dark turn, an adviser to Musk told NBC News that the recently deposed DOGE chief “does not give a f--- about Republicans or the RNC, or House seats, or whatever.”
“He will blow them up,” the adviser said. “He will... I mean, we already know Republicans are going to lose the House. Senate will likely be fine, but Elon does not give a s--t about that party stuff.”
Aides to the president are reportedly trying to lower the temperature between Musk and Trump after the Tesla chief began trashing the bill on Tuesday. Among other attacks, Musk wrote on social media that “next year, we fire all politicians” who voted for it.
In a statement to The Daily Beast, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “This is an unfortunate episode from Elon, who is unhappy with the One Big Beautiful Bill because it does not include the policies he wanted. The president is focused on passing this historic piece of legislation and making our country great again.”
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill would add $2.4 trillion to the deficit over a decade.
Things escalated even further on Thursday, when Trump was forced to finally respond to the attacks. By the end of the day, Trump was threatening to cancel Musk’s federal contracts and Musk was accusing Trump of appearing in FBI files related to Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Republicans wary of getting hit in the crossfire have been trying to lay low in the hopes that things will eventually blow over.
“I have a rule, I never get between a dog and a fire hydrant,” Sen. John Kennedy told the Daily Beast when asked about the nasty tit for tat.
House Speaker Mike Johnson took a different approach, rushing past reporters holding a baby in his arms—which belonged to his chief of staff—in an effort to avoid commenting. Other lawmakers told the Daily Beast they weren’t worried about being primaried.
“He can use his money wherever he wants, and I admire what he’s used it for so far,” South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman said.
A few months ago, Musk had said he would pour $100 million into political action committees associated with Trump. Now, however, that money won’t be forthcoming, the Musk adviser told NBC.
“It’s gone,” the adviser said of the money. “He’s going to go nuclear. He will support Democrats if needed; he absolutely will.”
An online poll from YouGov found that Democrats aren’t interested in joining forces with Musk, though they do seem to be enjoying the implosion of his bromance with Trump.
“This is Christmas,” a Democratic Party operative told NBC in a text message.
Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie—a fiscal hawk who incurred Trump’s wrath by being one of just two Republicans who voted against the “big beautiful bill”—was also reveling in the chaos.
“I tell my colleagues if I get hit on Independence Ave., and they have to deliver my eulogy, to say ‘He was having his best day ever,’” Massie told the Daily Beast on Thursday with a grin.
