White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters early Friday he is “not glad or whatever” about Elon Musk’s exit, comments that came one day after Musk and President Trump publicly feuded online.
“I’m not glad or whatever … People come and go from the White House,” Navarro said when asked whether he was glad to see Musk “out of the fray,” given their disagreements over tariffs.
Navarro noted Musk’s status as a special government employee, which was limited to 130 days.
Navarro added that he and members of the advisory Department of Government Efficiency were working on “a very special project” regarding one unidentified agency.
“We’ve taken a computer program that’s very important, that is run like a 1950s IBM punch card operation at great expense to the American people,” he said, “and we’re going to turn that from a Model T into a Ferrari, and it’s going to transform a bunch of people’s lives and save American taxpayers a lot of money.”
Navarro and Musk have not always seen eye to eye, particularly over the issue of tariffs and Tesla, which the tech mogul co-founded and leads.
Musk notably trashed Navarro on X in April, calling him “truly a moron” after Navarro described Tesla as a “car assembler” instead of “car manufacturer.”
The two have been at odds over tariffs, with Musk being a vocal opponent of the strategy. Navarro told reporters on Friday that while “we can have disagreements” over tariffs, “I would simply say that everybody during our first term who said that the tariffs were going to be recessionary and inflationary were obviously, obviously and widely wrong. All we got was price stability and growth.”
A spectacular online feud erupted between Musk and Trump on Thursday, which quickly became personal between the former allies.
Earlier this week, Musk slammed Trump’s megabill in Congress, calling it a post on X “massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill” and a “disgusting abomination.”
Trump expressed his disappointment over Musk’s remarks during an Oval Office meeting on Thursday.
He knew every aspect of this bill. He knew it better than almost anybody. And he never had a problem until right after he left,” the president said.
“I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot.”
The situation quickly devolved after Trump mused that Musk maybe missed being in the White House, with Musk taking credit for Trump’s win during the November election and claiming the president has ties to convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison while awaiting trial.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
