Trump Hints at Possible Deportation of Elon Musk Over Criticism of Spending Bill
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday suggested he may consider deporting billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, following Musk’s public criticism of the president’s flagship spending initiative.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump was asked whether he would contemplate deporting Musk, the South African-born CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. “I don’t know. We’ll have to take a look,” Trump responded. “We might have to put DOGE on Elon. You know what DOGE is? DOGE is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon.”
The president was referring to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a controversial federal agency that Musk once led before resigning in late May. Trump indicated that DOGE may soon investigate Musk’s companies, particularly their receipt of government subsidies.
The remarks come after Musk criticized Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” a sweeping legislative package that recently dropped provisions aimed at supporting electric vehicles (EVs). Musk, a vocal proponent of EV adoption, has expressed disappointment over the change.
“He’s losing his EV mandate,” Trump said. “He’s very upset about things, but you know, he could lose a lot more than that, I can tell you right now. Elon can lose a lot more than that.”
Trump had made similar comments late Monday on his Truth Social platform, where he wrote: “Without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa.”
Neither Musk nor representatives of Tesla or SpaceX have responded publicly to the president’s statements as of press time.
