President-elect Donald Trump is becoming increasingly frustrated with Elon Musk, his wealthiest and most outspoken adviser, according to sources speaking to Mediaite.
Musk, the world’s richest man, played a major role in Trump’s White House transition, supporting him with $150 million in the 2024 election and backing him relentlessly on X, the social media platform he owns.
Sources close to the transition, who spoke anonymously, say Trump is getting tired of Musk’s constant presence and the media attention his actions are getting.
“Trump is definitely annoyed,” said one insider who worked on the 2024 campaign. “There’s a Chinese saying: ‘two tigers can’t live on one mountaintop.’”
Last week, a split occurred within Trump’s movement after Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy supported foreign worker visas, angering prominent MAGA voices and hardliners like Steve Bannon. Some Trump supporters, including conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, claimed Musk removed their verification badges on X because of their criticism.
In a heated X post on Saturday, Musk responded to the backlash: “The reason I’m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla, and other companies that made America strong is because of H1B. Take a step back and go F yourself in the face. I will fight on this issue like you can’t imagine.”
Bannon responded by calling Musk a “toddler.”
The online conflict last week served as a reminder to be careful about what is said publicly. On Sunday, Susie Wiles, Trump’s pick for White House chief of staff, sent a memo to the transition team about social media use, forbidding any comments without prior approval from the incoming White House counsel.
Although Musk is involved in the transition, he doesn’t have an official role in the new administration. He and Ramaswamy will oversee a non-governmental group focused on reducing government spending.
The idea that Musk is secretly acting as a president has been circulating so much recently that Trump addressed it earlier this month.
“He’s not going to be president, I can tell you that,” Trump said about Musk. “You know why he can’t be? He wasn’t born in this country.”
“At first, there was probably some attraction to it, but it seems like it could turn bad,” said another Trump insider about the relationship between Trump and Musk. “Trump is Trump. Having someone around that much and with so much influence would be a hassle.”
“The guy came in, gave a ton of money, and wants to take over,” the insider said. “I don’t think Musk has bad intentions, but you can’t just have a shadow president.”
The Trump insider who worked on the 2024 campaign downplayed Musk’s influence, saying the media is exaggerating.
“They’re portraying him as a co-president,” the insider said. “Musk is just a character actor. There’s only one executive producer, and that’s Trump. Musk has a role, but he’s there to disrupt Washington, and Trump is using him.”
“The only one who can move the MAGA movement is Trump,” they added. “Musk will amplify the message.”
The source also warned that Musk’s wealth and influence won’t protect him if Trump’s frustrations continue.
“Unless you’re family, you’re not family,” they said.
