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Forbes Daily: Tesla Takes A Hit From Trump And Musk’s Messy Feud

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The alliance between the world’s richest man and President Donald Trump broke down Thursday in typical reality show fashion: a messy blowup.

Elon Musk and Trump traded barbs Thursday, after Musk amped up his criticism this week of Trump’s sweeping policy bill. Musk, who donated more than $250 million to help elect Trump, accused the president of “ingratitude,” suggesting he would have lost the election without him. Trump threatened to remove Musk’s government contracts, and Musk later backed a user’s suggestion that Trump be impeached.

All the fighting isn’t helping Tesla, which was already struggling due to Musk’s polarizing political actions. The EV-maker’s stock plunged 14% by the end of the day, and the feud could create even bigger problems for Tesla if Trump turns up the heat on federal investigations into the company.

Musk signaled he was open to a truce, and White House officials reportedly scheduled a call with him.

Citadel CEO Ken Griffin

Hedge fund billionaire and GOP donor Ken Griffin voted for President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, but during the Forbes Iconoclast Summit Thursday, the Citadel founder slammed the president’s tariff policies and the GOP’s signature spending bill. Griffin, who Forbes estimates has a net worth of $44.3 billion, criticized the legislation for increasing the ballooning federal debt, and warned tariffs have “taken their toll already on our economy.”

Boeing has been making steady progress toward righting its commercial airliner business under new CEO Kelly Ortberg, and the spectacular collapse of the relationship between Trump and his former first buddy Elon Musk could provide a lift for its struggling space division. The blowup could have a payoff for Boeing in three areas: its struggling Starliner crew capsule program; the embattled Artemis moon landing program, for which Boeing produces giant rockets; and potentially United Launch Alliance, its rocket joint venture with Lockheed Martin.

Trump’s tariffs are intended to bring jobs back to the U.S. and benefit small businesses, but a new report from the National Federation of Independent Business shows they’ve

© Forbes