WASHINGTON : The feud, rooted in Musk’s criticism of Trump’s budget bill, has now spiraled into political threats, personal jabs, and talk of cancelled government contracts.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk admitted that his online commentary about Trump “went too far.” “I regret some of my posts about President DonaldTrump last week. They went too far,” he wrote, just days after launching a series of pointed attacks on the President.

The row between Musk and Trump intensified over the weekend, with Trump warning of “serious consequences” if Musk were to financially support Democratic candidates opposing Republican lawmakers who backed his proposed budget. Speaking to NBC News in a phone interview, Trump said, “If he does, he’ll have to pay the consequences for that,” though he declined to clarify what those consequences might be.

When asked whether he intended to reconcile with Musk, Trump replied flatly, “No,” adding that he was “too busy doing other things” and had “no intention of speaking to him.”

The fallout stems from Musk’s scathing critique of Trump’s controversial budget bill—dubbed by the President as his “big, beautiful bill”—which includes sweeping tax cuts and a ramp-up in military spending. Though the bill narrowly passed the House of Representatives last month, Musk called it “reckless” in a series of now-deleted X posts. One post even appeared to support a call for Trump’s impeachment, while another warned that the bill’s tariff provisions could lead to a recession.

Tensions reached new heights when Musk referenced Trump’s past association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a post which was swiftly deleted but not before drawing Trump’s ire. Trump dismissed the jab as “old news,” asserting, “Even Epstein’s lawyer said I had nothing to do with it.”

Trump, who had once appointed Musk as head of the now-defunct Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during his first term, said he was “very disappointed” in Musk’s recent behavior, especially given their past working relationship. “I’ve helped Elon a lot,” Trump stated.

The President went so far as to float the idea of terminating government contracts and subsidies linked to Musk’s companies, writing on Truth Social: “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.”

Despite the escalating feud, Trump claimed that the controversy has helped bring attention to the merits of his bill. “I think Elon brought out the strengths of the bill because people who weren’t as focused started focusing on it, and they see how good it is,” he said, though he added, “I think it’s a shame that he’s so depressed and so heartbroken.”

Musk, who reportedly spent over a quarter of a billion dollars to support Trump’s 2024 re-election campaign, has yet to respond to Trump’s threats directly. However, his expression of regret may indicate an attempt to deescalate tensions—at least publicly.

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