Musk’s Fury Against Tax Bill Meets A Calm Trump
India-West News Desk
WASHINGTON D.C. – Elon Musk’s blistering attack on the Senate-passed tax bill has drawn a surprisingly measured response from President Donald Trump, highlighting a stark contrast in tone between the two high-profile figures once closely aligned.
The tech billionaire and former presidential advisor, who left the administration in May 2025, launched a scathing critique of what the White House has hailed as its “big, beautiful bill” on tax cuts. Musk, who posted his denunciation on his 54th birthday, called the nearly 1,000-page legislation “utterly insane and destructive,” warning it would “destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country!”
His opposition centered on provisions he said would raise taxes on renewable energy sectors—including solar, battery storage, wind, geothermal, and nuclear—while offering new subsidies to coal used in steel production. Musk, whose company Tesla develops battery and solar technologies, accused the bill of “giving handouts to industries of the past while severely damaging industries of the future.” He had earlier labeled the legislation a “disgusting abomination” and urged lawmakers to “KILL the BILL.”
Despite the harsh rhetoric, President Trump responded with restraint. Speaking to Fox News on June 29, he called Musk a “wonderful guy” and a “smart guy,” adding, “I know he’s going to do well always.”
When asked about the fallout with Musk, Trump attributed the tech mogul’s frustration to the repeal of an electric vehicle tax credit. “Look, the electric vehicle mandate, the EV mandate, is a tough thing for him,” Trump said. “I would, you know, I don’t want everybody to have to have an electric car.” Musk has previously denied this was the core of his opposition.
The bill, which narrowly passed the Senate by a 51-49 vote, now heads to the House of Representatives. Its passage marks a key legislative win for Trump, even as it strains ties with one of his highest-profile former allies.
