Australia and the World Past and Present

It was always going to happen. The only real question was when. Sooner or later?

Donald Trump and Elon Muck have fallen out in spectacular fashion.

The two men joined forces for a while.

But what was at the root of their relationship?

For Trump, was Elon just an election funding cash cow? Or did the President have a certain regard for the world’s richest man? Trump holds a degree of respect for self-promoters. Musk has an ability to generate headlines. Not only this, but he actually owns a social media company of his own.

And why was Musk drawn into Trump’s orbit? Was it purely just a commercial consideration? Did Musk consider it good for business? Or did he want greater political power for himself and access to the machinery of government?

Musk even became a temporary aide in Trump’s administration, heading up the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). In this role, Musk seemed to delight in cutting government spending. Why would he do this if he didn’t really believe in it?

Then came the ‘big, beautiful bill’ – Trump’s spending program to fund his various initiatives.

Musk saw the bill as undoing all the work that DOGE had already done. Musk called the bill a “disgusting abomination”. He argued that it would add trillions of dollars to the national deficit.

Musk’s companies hold government contracts worth many billions of dollars. It may profit Musk to stay on Trump’s good side.

We had already seen a Tesla car occupying the White House lawn. Detractors see it as a symptom of the commercial interests seeping in to the Trump administration – and the nation’s highest political office.

Musk’s company, SpaceX, holds significant government contracts.

His Dragon spacecraft ferries NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.

Musk donated large sums of money to Trump’s 2024 election campaign.

A key question is who gained more from their relationship – Musk or Trump? Musk took a sabbatical from his car company to take the reins at DOGE. In the meantime Telsa’s share price plummeted. Musk may have suffered much reputational damage. Musk became the fall guy from the anger over DOGE cuts. Musk’s appointment was temporary – and so it seems were the savings made by DOGE.

Trump continues on as President with the levers of government still at his fingertips. He can still move to end Musk’s government contracts.

Musk could start bankrolling Republicans not allied to Trump in upcoming midterm elections. Or he could even start funding Democrat candidates. Such action would likely see retaliatory action from Trump and put Musk’s government programs at risk.