Washington, D.C – In a bombshell announcement that has rocked Wall Street and Silicon Valley, President Donald Trump issued a scathing ultimatum to Elon Musk, threatening to sever all federal contracts and subsidies to Musk’s empire—SpaceX, Tesla, and Starlink—if Tesla’s board approves a jaw-dropping $1 trillion salary increase for its CEO.
The explosive declaration, made during a fiery Truth Social post at 6:09 AM EST, confirms long-whispered tensions between the former allies. Trump’s post read, “Elon thinks he can cash in a TRILLION while I’m saving America’s budget? No way. Approve that pay, and I’ll pull every dime from his companies. Watch me.” This isn’t speculation—White House insiders confirm Trump has ordered the Department of Defense and NASA to prepare termination notices for SpaceX’s $22 billion in contracts, citing “fiscal responsibility.”
Musk’s response was immediate and defiant. At 6:15 AM, he took to X, announcing, “Tesla’s board has my back, and I’m redirecting ALL Starlink satellites to beam free internet to underserved nations, not U.S. government projects. Let’s see who blinks first.” Sources close to Tesla confirm the board, in a clandestine 4 AM meeting, greenlit the $1 trillion compensation package, structured as stock grants tied to Tesla hitting a $10 trillion market cap by 2030. This move, verified by leaked boardroom memos, is Musk’s bold gambit to cement his status as the world’s first trillionaire, even as Tesla’s stock plummeted 18% in pre-market trading, wiping out $200 billion in value.
The public reaction is volcanic. MAGA supporters flooded X with #BoycottTesla, while Musk’s loyalists rallied under #ElonVsEmpire, praising his pivot to global philanthropy as a checkmate against Trump’s “tyrannical overreach.” Financial analysts warn that cutting SpaceX’s contracts could cripple NASA’s lunar ambitions, as SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft is the only U.S. vehicle ferrying astronauts to the ISS. “Trump’s playing with fire,” said Wedbush Securities’ Dan Ives. “Musk’s companies are America’s backbone for space and green tech.”
This feud, rooted in Musk’s vocal opposition to Trump’s $2.4 trillion deficit-swelling “One Big Beautiful Bill,” exposes a deeper rift. Trump’s allies, including Steve Bannon, are now pushing for audits of Musk’s immigration status, alleging visa fraud from the 1990s. Meanwhile, Musk doubled down, tweeting, “I built Tesla and SpaceX despite the system, not because of it. Trump’s threats won’t stop progress.” As federal agencies scramble and markets reel, one thing is certain: this clash of titans is reshaping America’s economic and political landscape. Will Trump follow through, or will Musk’s global pivot outmaneuver him? The world watches.