Politics
REPORT: Elon Musk Got Into A ‘Physical Altercation’ With Trump Cabinet Member
Not long before his departure from the White House, Elon Musk was involved in a physical altercation with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent after being called a “fraud,” a new report claims.
The clash was reportedly a primary catalyst for the tech billionaire’s public falling out with the administration over the past week, which culminated in Musk baselessly accusing the president of pedophilia and calling for his impeachment. Musk has since deleted the controversial post, along with others in which he criticized the administration.
According to a report from the Washington Post citing former White House advisor Steve Bannon, the heated altercation took place in April when Bessent and Musk each submitted competing plans to the president for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The two men left the meeting hurling insults at each other within an earshot of the president’s office, Bannon told the outlet.
“Scott said, ‘You’re a fraud. You’re a total fraud,’” Bannon said, referencing Musk’s initial goal of $2 trillion in cuts through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative. By the time Musk departed the White House last week, DOGE savings stood just over $175 billion.
Trump has continued to praise Musk’s efforts even after the outburst, however, and has committed to making DOGE “part of the DNA” of the federal government.
The spat between Bessent and Musk allegedly turned physical when the tech billion shoved his shoulder into Bessent “like a rugby player,” at which point the treasury secretary fought back, Bannon reported.
Bannon further told the outlet that the scuffle spilled over to the entrance of the national security advisor’s office before it was broken up. The Tesla and SpaceX founder was then promptly removed from the West Wing.
“President Trump heard about it and said, ‘This is too much,’” Bannon said.
Bannon’s statements seemingly confirm a number of additional reports on the “WWE-style” altercation back in April. The incident was reported on by the New York Times, Newsweek and Axios at the time.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was asked about the incident during an appearance on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” this week. “What happened? Did he body-check the Treasury Secretary in the White House?” host Maria Bartiromo asked.
Leavitt responded by refusing to neither confirm nor deny the claim, stating, “When this story originally broke, I said from the podium that there have definitely been healthy disagreements amongst the cabinet and Elon Musk. There were times in which they got frustrated with one another, but I think that really speaks to the heart of this cabinet and the president’s team, that they can have these robust disagreements and then still come together to do what’s right for the people they are serving.”
The White House press secretary further noted that President Trump praised Musk and offered him a key to the White House after his term as DOGE chief came to an end last week. “And you saw when President Trump graciously sent Elon Musk back to his companies, Secretary Besant was there in the Oval Office, along with Secretary Lutnick and Stephen Miller. I was there. The chief of staff was there. And we were all hoping for the best for Elon,” she said.
“And I think it’s unfortunate that now that he’s gone back to his companies, he is lambasting this bill that he was very much supportive of by all accounts,” she added, referencing the tech billionaire’s week-long “kill the bill campaign.”
President Trump told reporters on Friday that Musk’s opposition to the bill stems from the discontinuation of the Biden Administration’s electric vehicle subsidies. Musk has denied the claim, though he did describe subsidies for gas-powered vehicles as “unfair” in an X post earlier this week.
“I mean he never spoke out against it until he went back to his companies and that’s okay. He has a right to speak for his companies but the president and the Treasury Secretary and this whole cabinet are working on behalf of the country,” Leavitt said. “So everyone is focused on moving forward now.”
