Elon Musk and Donald Trump's unexpected bromance has come to an abrupt end after the tech billionaire pushed back against the President's One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The duo's friendship broke down in recent days despite Elon's role as a major player in Donald's election campaign and his previous position as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The question is: just how did they get here after months of public support for each other?
A friendship is born
© Getty ImagesThe South African-born businessman previously donated to the Democrat Party for years and had spoken out against the President ahead of his re-election campaign.
He swiftly changed his tune in 2024 after Donald survived an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania, taking to his social media platform X to write: "I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery."
Elon then joined his new friend on the campaign trail and would go on to donate almost $300 million to his cause, quickly becoming one of Donald's most visible supporters.
© Alamy Stock PhotoAfter Donald won the election in November, Elon attended the inauguration and was then named the head of DOGE, frequently appearing in the Oval Office for press conferences and updates about the department's latest moves.
The 78-year-old even hosted an impromptu display of Tesla cars on the White House lawn after Elon's company suffered in the stock market due to his association with the President.
© Getty ImagesIn perhaps the most telling example of their close friendship, the father of 14 wrote on X in February: "I love @realDonaldTrump as much as a straight man can love another man."
Cracks began to show when he stepped back from his role at DOGE in May, revealing on X that his "scheduled time as a Special Government Employee" had come to an end. He thanked Donald for the "opportunity to reduce wasteful spending".
Beginning of the end
© Getty ImagesIt all came crashing down days later thanks to the Big Beautiful Bill, which proposed a range of tax cuts and changes to social programs that Elon claimed would "burden American citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt".
Donald then threatened to cut Elon's government contracts, including with Tesla and SpaceX, and claimed that the CEO was "crazy".
"Elon was 'wearing thin,' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!" he wrote on Truth Social.
© Getty ImagesElon hit back, claiming that the President would have lost the election without his contributions to the campaign. He also agreed with an X user that Donald should be impeached. "Such ingratitude," he added.
The nail in the coffin came on Thursday, when Elon alleged on X that Donald had shared a long friendship with convicted abuser Jeffrey Epstein. "Have a nice day, DJT!" he added.
The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, dismissed his claims in a statement, saying: "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."
© Getty ImagesIt seems there is no coming back for the pair, who were previously supportive of each other in the press.
"Trump has 3.5 years left as president," Elon wrote on X in a cutting jab towards Donald, "but I will be around for 40-plus years."
To see Elon at Donald's inauguration, watch below...
