As Elon Musk’s tenure as a senior US government official was reaching its end in April, the billionaire reportedly had a physical altercation with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that required intervention.

According to The Washington Post, following a meeting between the two and US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office in mid-April in which each official advocated for his preference for acting IRS commissioner, an argument broke out between the two in the hallway, during which they hurled insults at one another.

The report said that, according to Trump’s far-right ally Steve Bannon, Bessent called Musk “a fraud” because the tech mogul did not uncover $1 trillion in wasteful and fraudulent government spending as he claimed he would in his capacity as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an agency created especially for Musk after Trump returned to power in January.

Musk then thrust his shoulder into Bessent, Bannon said in an interview, “like a rugby player.” Bessent struck Musk back in response, the report said, and multiple people had to break up the two men.

“President Trump heard about it and said, ‘This is too much,’” Bannon was quoted as saying,........

© The Times of Israel