The battle between the world’s richest man and the White House just escalated to new heights. After Elon Musk publicly accused President Trump of appearing in Jeffrey Epstein’s sealed court records and even endorsed calls for impeachment, the White House fired back with blistering language rarely heard from official channels.
Press Secretary Mara Thompson, speaking at Tuesday’s briefing, slammed Musk’s allegations as “baseless smears” and warned that “no one is above accountability, including billionaires” — a stark contrast to Trump’s years of cheering on his tech donors.
“These are reckless, unfounded attacks from a man who benefits from American leadership,” @PressSecThompson said. “We won’t be bullied by money.” #WhiteHouse— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 10, 2025
Musk’s initial posts on X—charged with insinuations that Trump’s name appears in newly unsealed Epstein documents—have become the catalyst for this unprecedented clash. In one viral post, Musk wrote, “Time to drop the real bomb: Trump’s hiding something in those files,” prompting the hashtag #EpsteinFiles to trend globally.
Within hours, Musk doubled down, endorsing calls for impeachment in a simple “Yes” reply to an X thread demanding Trump’s ouster and replacement by Vice President J.D. Vance, a move covered extensively by Axios.
Yes. #MuskVsTrump— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 5, 2025
The White House’s response was swift and merciless. Thompson accused Musk of weaponizing his platform for personal vendettas, citing his own record of creating chaos on social media and the 14% slump in Tesla stock after his public feud with Trump over the “One Big Beautiful Bill” that The Guardian reported slashed EV tax incentives.
“When a billionaire inflates his net worth off American ingenuity, then turns around to tear down the very institutions that gave him that power, we call that hypocrisy,” Thompson said, referencing Musk’s habit of touting space exploration credits while attacking domestic policy.
Musk’s claims about Trump appearing in the Epstein files hinge on flight logs and contact logs cited in Reuters analysis, but few details have emerged. Legal experts note that a name’s appearance does not necessarily imply wrongdoing, yet Musk’s tweets portrayed it as a smoking gun.
Meanwhile, senior White House aides privately fretted that Musk’s intervention threatens to overshadow legislative priorities. “We’ve got a lot on our plate—climate bills, infrastructure, AI regulation,” one aide told Politico. “But once Elon’s involved, everything becomes about Elon.”
“We won’t let billionaires hijack our agenda.” — White House aide off mic. #WhiteHouseLeaks— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) June 10, 2025
Public reaction has been fierce on both sides. On X, #StandWithTrump surged after Thompson’s remarks, with stormy exchanges between pro-Trump influencers and Musk loyalists. “Can’t let a guy who tweets rockets dictate our democracy,” wrote conservative commentator Dana Price, while a Musk fan replied, “We need truth, even if it stings,” linking to a CNN roundup.
Global markets wobbled as the feud intensified. SpaceX launch providers saw contract talks stall amid fears of politicized retaliation, according to a Bloomberg report. NASA insiders, cited by NPR, acknowledged “unease” over future collaborations.
But for Musk, the feud appears calculated. Friends close to the billionaire told The Wall Street Journal he sees this as a pivotal moment to pivot his public profile from tech magnate to political kingmaker. “He wants to prove he can move mountains—politically,” an associate said.
Yet not everyone is convinced Musk’s crusade is altruistic. Ethical AI expert Dr. Marisol Vega argued in Nature that Musk’s pattern of personal attacks undermines serious discourse on issues like algorithmic bias and platform governance. “Turning democracy into viral content is dangerous,” Vega wrote.
Back in the briefing room, Thompson closed by reminding reporters that “no one, not even the richest person on earth, is above the rule of law,” and vowed to “hand over any evidence to the Justice Department” if Musk’s insinuations prove credible. That challenge prompted Musk to post a screenshot of the DOJ’s request for unredacted Epstein files, captioned “On it.”
“On it.” — Elon Musk shares DOJ FOIA request screenshot. #EpsteinFiles— TechCrunch (@TechCrunch) June 10, 2025
As this unprecedented spat rages on, one thing is clear: with Musk and Trump at war, the boundaries between corporate influence and political authority have never looked more blurred, and the nation—and the markets—are watching every move.
