The feud between President Trump and Elon Musk grew exponentially more bitter on Thursday.

The two exchanged volleys of insults that reached their pinnacle — or nadir, depending upon one’s perspective — when Musk alleged that files on the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein were being kept secret to protect Trump.

The fissure between the two men now yawns wide, less than a week after Musk officially left his position spearheading the quasi-official Department of Government Efficiency.

In the intervening days, Musk had become bolder in expressing his dissent over the enormous budget and tax cut bill currently making its way through Congress. Trump refers to that legislation as the “big, beautiful bill.” It is the centerpiece of his Capitol Hill agenda.

But Thursday brought a far more acrimonious and personal tone to the exchanges.

Here are the five big takeaways.

Musk really 'went there' on Trump and Epstein

Musk’s social media posts about Trump and Epstein, the wealthy serial sex offender who killed himself in murky circumstances in 2019, was a jaw-dropping shot at the president.

It’s well-known that Trump was acquainted with Epstein. On Thursday, Musk also took the opportunity to remind his followers of Trump’s quote in a New York magazine profile of Epstein more than two decades ago. “He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side,” Trump said.

But Musk’s intervention gave new wings to lurid speculation. Musk alleged that Trump’s name “is in the Epstein files. That is the real........

© The Hill