One Month Left in Office, Has Trump and Musk's Political Alliance Broken Down?

Recently, a high-profile dispute at the White House once again brought the U.S. government into the spotlight. The head of the Department of Government Efficiency, Musk, and the U.S. Treasury Secretary Bennett engaged in a heated argument due to ideological differences, almost escalating into a physical confrontation. In the end, Trump accepted Bennett's appointment proposal, raising concerns about cracks in the relationship between Trump and Musk. Behind this conflict is not only a power clash between Silicon Valley and Washington but also a revealing of the complex game from "close allies" to "power balancing" between Trump and Musk.

Looking back to the beginning of the year, Trump's most significant political reform involving Musk was the establishment of the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) to promote radical reform under the guise of "streamlining the government." Its core objectives include reducing government spending, digitizing the bureaucratic system, and replacing human decision-making with algorithms. The core team consists of 6 technical elites aged 19-25. Since Trump took office on January 20th, DOGE has swiftly carried out its restructuring, from shutting down the U.S. International Development Agency to significantly reducing the number of federal government employees, and even obtaining taxpayer privacy information to enhance fiscal efficiency. Under Trump's direction and support, Musk has bravely faced the challenges and spearheaded a radical reform storm in the United States.

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According to DOGE's official website data, as of April 20, 2025, DOGE has saved approximately $160 billion in total, averaging about $993.79 saved per taxpayer, with savings in various areas:

Contract Terminations: 8,454 contracts terminated, saving about $30 billion. For example, terminating the Risk Management Agency's lease in Topeka, Kansas, with an annual rent of $121,800, is expected to save approximately $964,000 over multiple years.

Grant Cancellations: 9,699 grants terminated, saving about $33 billion. For example, terminating grants from the U.S. International Development Agency to the Global Vaccine and Immunization Alliance Foundation, saving a total of $1.75 billion.

Lease Terminations: 643 leases terminated, saving about $3 billion.

However, an NPR analysis points out that some contract terminations did not result in actual savings. For example, 794 contract cancellations were expected to bring no savings as the funds were already fully committed. Additionally, the DOGE calculated savings using the potential highest value of the contract rather than actual expenditures, leading to controversy.

Honeymoon Period: Political Allies' "Two-Way Commitment"

As early as the 2024 U.S. presidential election, Musk began frequent interactions with Trump. At that time, Musk contributed $259 million, mobilized all Silicon Valley resources, and with his personal influence endorsement, became a key supporter for Trump's return to the White House. After Trump took office, as his "angel investor," Musk naturally gained unprecedented political status and power.

On February 7, Musk publicly expressed his support for Trump on social media. He said his love for Trump was "the maximum love that a straight man can give to another man."

On March 4, while attending Trump's State of the Union address, Musk was wearing a tie borrowed from Trump.

As Musk massively laid off federal employees from government agencies, a wave of vandalism against Tesla cars, intimidation of owners, and protests at dealership stores erupted nationwide. Tesla factories faced peaceful demonstrations and acts of destruction, including charging station fires. Vandalism of Cybertrucks surged across the U.S., with some owners even graffitiing their own Tesla vehicles to protest against Musk.

Reports of Tesla car and dealership vandalism as well as protest activities suggest that opposition to Musk has reached a boiling point. Bell Analyst Ben Carlo stated on CNBC, "When people's cars are at risk of being scratched or burned, even those who support Musk or are indifferent to Musk may have second thoughts about whether to buy a Tesla."

Musk has also stated multiple times that running his own businesses is "very challenging." Tesla's stock price has experienced its most severe drop in five years, and his social media company X has also suffered multiple outages.

However, such swift reforms are bound to harm the interests of a considerable portion of people. From the day Musk entered politics, opposition voices have been constant. Tesla's stock has plummeted since Musk took office, nearly halving its market value, marking the most severe decline in five years. This has led to Musk's personal assets evaporating by approximately $121 billion since the beginning of the year.

As Musk's biggest political backer and ally, Trump inevitably had to stand up for him when Musk came under attack.

On the afternoon of March 11th, local time in the U.S., Trump held a 30-minute press conference on the White House driveway. The press conference looked more like a large-scale Tesla car show—accompanied by Musk, Trump answered questions about the U.S. stock market, Canadian tariffs, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict while test-driving five different types and colors of Tesla cars.

"The one I like is that one," Trump pointed to a bright red Model S priced at about $80,000, saying. In the end, Trump chose the Model S and said he would write an $80,000 check to buy the car in full.

Trump also criticized those who were boycotting Tesla, believing that they were harming a great American company. He claimed that if the boycotters continued to treat Tesla this way, he would root out these people and "curse" them to "hell." White House spokesperson Harrison Fields also stated: "The despicable acts of violence being continuously carried out by radical left-wing activists against Tesla are no different from domestic terrorism."

Under Trump's "endorsement," Tesla's stock price rebounded during trading on Tuesday, rising 3.79% at the close.

To show loyalty, on March 24th, at Trump's third cabinet meeting, Musk wore a red hat with the words "Trump is always right."

During this period, the two were still intimate comrades-in-arms dedicated to advancing reform. Trump needed a "sharp tool" to expand his territory, while Musk needed a platform to realize his political ambitions. Both were highly aligned in their goals and interests.

The First Cracks Appear: Policy Differences and Power Struggles

Since Trump announced his high tariffs policy, a conflict arose between Trump's political goals and Musk's personal interests, leading to a crack in their relationship. The high tariffs caused a sharp drop in the U.S. stock market in a short period, and Musk's assets have shrunk by over $100 billion since the beginning of the year. Musk, as an entrepreneur, views issues from an economic rather than political perspective, supporting barrier reduction and free trade. He has also repeatedly expressed his opposition to the tariff policy.

On April 5, during the Italian Alliance Assembly held in Florence, Musk, in a video call interview with Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, expressed, "Ultimately, I hope that Europe and the United States can reach an agreement. In my view, ideally, we should move towards zero tariffs, effectively establishing a free trade area between Europe and North America." On April 7, Musk shared a video on Twitter featuring the late free-market economist Milton Friedman discussing the benefits of free trade. Musk did not add any text, but this move was widely interpreted as a criticism of Trump's tariff policies.

Musk's brother, Kimbal Musk, also criticized Trump's tariff policy on Twitter, pointing out that "Taxing consumption means less consumption, which also means fewer job opportunities, leading to even less consumption and fewer job opportunities." He believes that taxation is a "structural, permanent tax on American consumers."

Particularly targeted at trade advisor Peter Navarro, Musk has also made many criticisms and sarcastic comments. On April 8, he replied to a post quoting Navarro's interview where Navarro referred to Tesla more as an "assembler" than a "manufacturer," criticizing its components coming from China, Japan, and Taiwan. Musk directly responded in a heated manner, stating, "Navarro is a complete idiot, what he said here is obviously false," followed by a community note proving the Tesla Model Y is the "most American-made car." One retort apparently wasn't enough, as Musk further referred to Navarro as "dumber than a sack of bricks" in another post.

Intensifying Conflict: Bezos and Musk Engage in Fierce War of Words

Their contradictory stances on the tariff issue gradually fermented in the intricate power struggle.

On April 23, local time, it was reported by insiders that on April 17, Musk and Treasury Secretary Bezos had a heated clash during a meeting in the West Wing of the White House. Bezos lost control of his emotions and erupted with profanity, to which Musk provocatively responded with a "raise your voice." The confrontation even escalated to personal attacks, with Bezos angrily accusing Musk of exaggerating the DOGE budget cut issue, leading to no progress. Musk, in turn, directly retorted that Bezos was a "Soros puppet" and mocked him for his previous hedge fund debacle. The argument alarmed Trump and visiting Italian Prime Minister Meloni, and it took assistant intervention to separate the two.

The direct cause of this conflict was the controversy over the appointment of the IRS Commissioner. As Elon Musk, serving as the head of the U.S. Department of Efficiency, proposed the appointment of Gary Sharply as the Acting Commissioner of the IRS without the approval of Treasury Secretary Bennett, Bennett viewed this as a violation of his authority. He lobbied President Trump to revoke the appointment and instead support his own deputy, Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Falkend, for the position of IRS Commissioner.

The outcome of this power struggle seemed to favor Bennett as President Trump eventually supported Bennett's proposal, revoked Musk's nomination of Sharply, and appointed Falkend as the Acting Commissioner of the IRS.

The fact that two top U.S. officials could be so enraged as to publicly curse each other at the White House gates despite their public image was due to their long-standing animosity. Back when Trump first took office, Musk had strongly advocated for nominating Howard Lutnick as Treasury Secretary, but Trump ultimately chose Bennett and appointed Lutnick to lead the Department of Commerce. Perhaps from the beginning, Trump had strategically set up a situation where his subordinates would check each other, siding with whoever aligned more with his own ideas. This set the stage for future conflicts.

The conflict between the two was fundamentally a power struggle and game of influence between two factions within the Trump administration. The reformist faction represented by Musk sought to reshape the landscape through new policies, while the traditional faction represented by Bennett resisted actions that harmed their own interests. Trump's handling of this event was seen as a sign of Musk's diminished influence within the government.

It is worth noting that, regarding tariff policies, Bennett, unlike Musk's clear opposition, had publicly supported tariff policies, believing that implementing new tariffs in the U.S. was necessary. He also refuted the idea that new tariffs would cause an economic downturn. Perhaps the consistency in policy preferences was also a reason why Trump gradually leaned towards Bennett and distanced himself from Musk. After all, to Trump, a businessman by background, permanent interests matter more than permanent friends.

Musk's role was constrained by the 130-day term limit for special government employees, which began counting from Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025, and is expected to expire at the end of May. Anonymous sources within the White House hinted at the end of February that Musk "will stay," but on March 31, Trump himself openly acknowledged Musk's prioritization of his commercial duties and showed no signs of insisting on retention. Perhaps as the mission of DOGE is accomplished, Musk's 130-day government employee term enters its final phase, and Trump will gradually sideline Musk from the power center, shifting to new allies who align more with his current interests. In retrospect, it's a poignant reminder of how fleeting alliances can be.

The world's richest person, Musk, experienced the thrill of a "Tech Disruption Workplace" at the center of American politics. He ignited a fire for Trump's "New Sheriff in Town," touching the interests of countless people. He reformed the behemoth of the American government at an incredible speed, leaving behind not only a controversial outline of "Algorithmic Governance" but also exposing the deep-seated contradictions between capital and power in American politics. This radical experiment of "Tech Transforming Politics" seems to be nearing its conclusion. When Musk truly departs, that red hat proclaiming "Trump Is Always Right" may perhaps become the most dramatic footnote to this brief "political marriage."