Elon Musk has called for the impeachment of Donald Trump after claiming the president is named in secret files the US government holds on the disgraced paedophile, Jeffrey Epstein The world’s most powerful men entered a war of words in full public view on Thursday, trading barbs from their respective social media platforms. The Tesla boss responded “yes” to a user on X who wrote: “Trump should be impeached and JD Vance should replace him.” He earlier wrote: Mr Trump in turn threatened to cancel all of the Tesla and SpaceX owner’s government contracts, while Mr Musk said he will decommission his Dragon spacecraft which is used by Nasa to deliver and collect astronauts from the International Space Station. The president’s aides arranged a flurry of meetings to address the fallout with White House staff reportedly preparing to force allies to pick sides between the president and his former adviser, according to The New York Times. An administration official said Mr Musk is “clearly having an episode”. Steve Bannon, Mr Trump’s former adviser, encouraged the president to initiate a formal investigation into Mr Musk’s immigration status and have him “deported from the country immediately”. Mr Trump kicked off the verbal sparring during an Oval Office sit-down with the German chancellor earlier in the day, saying the Tesla boss had “Trump derangement syndrome”. Mr Musk shot back saying the president only won the election because of his support. Tesla shares tanked as the rift intensified. Investors in the electric car company, which closed down 14.3pc, fear that Mr Trump might hinder the roll-out of self-driving cars in the US, hitting the company’s growth potential. 11:41 PM BST That’s all for today Thank you for tuning in to our live blog of the explosive war of words between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. We’ll bring you all the latest tomorrow as the Trump administration scrambles to deal with the fallout. This live blog is now closed. 11:26 PM BST Musk net worth plummets by $34 billion Elon Musk’s net worth has plunged by billions of dollars as his relationship with Donald Trump spectacularly disintegrated. Mr Musk is still the world’s richest man, but he lost $34 billion between markets opening and closing on Thursday as Tesla shares nosedived by some 14 per cent, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. It marks the second-steepest fall in the index’s history. Investors appear to have been spooked by Mr Trump’s threat to strip Mr Musk’s companies of their government contracts and subsidies, which he claimed would save the government “billions and billions of dollars”. 11:19 PM BST Donald Trump should seize SpaceX, says Steve Bannon Steve Bannon has urged Donald Trump to seize control of SpaceX before midnight tonight. The former Trump adviser told his War Room podcast: “President Trump tonight should sign an executive order calling for the defence production act. “Seize SpaceX tonight before midnight.” Mr Bannon added: “He said he’s going to take down their primary product. Fine. Do what you want to do, but we’re seizing it tonight at midnight, and the government’s going to step in and manage this thing for a while, until we can get some stable management.” The defence production act, used during the Cold War, gives congressional approval for the president to take control of domestic industries for national defence. 11:04 PM BST Trump’s cabinet stay quiet Members of Donald Trump’s cabinet have remained tellingly silent after Elon Musk’s outburst against the president. Mr Trump’s cabinet are known for their pugnacious approach to dealing with dissenters, frequently rubbishing the reputation of their opponents. Yet thus far, the only reaction from the president himself has been to say he wished Mr Musk had turned against him “months ago”. Sticking to the party line, Karoline Leavitt, the outspoken White House press secretary, posted a muted solidarity message on X, resharing the president’s comments. 11:00 PM BST Marjorie Taylor Greene throws support behind Trump Marjorie Taylor Greene has thrown her weight behind Donald Trump amid the US president’s public spat with Elon Musk. “There is absolutely no daylight between Congresswoman Greene and President Trump,” a spokesman for Ms Taylor Greene told Newsweek, citing a recent post on her social media account in which she said she voted for Mr Trump in last year’s election and “not anyone else”. The intervention is significant from the Georgia congresswoman, a Republican firebrand who is often seen as the voice of Mr Trump’s base. She was also one of Mr Musk’s closest allies in Congress, as chair of the House of Representatives’ Doge subcommittee, which was set up to support the Tesla billionaire’s moves to cut billions of dollars in government spending. Ms Taylor Greene last month voted for the “one big, beautiful bill” that proved the split in Mr Musk’s relationship with Mr Trump, but has since said she would oppose it over a clause that would limit state powers to regulate artificial intelligence companies. 10:59 PM BST Social media erupts over Musk vs Trump row Social media has erupted after Elon Musk declared war on Donald Trump in a series of explosive posts on X. Mr Musk’s post accusing the president of being implicated in the Epstein files has received more than 16 million impressions and generated a host of memes. A post from February in which Mr Musk said he loves the president “as much as a straight man can love another man”, has been widely shared, after the pairs relationship came crashing down. Others have quipped that Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin have offered to mediate their fallout, in a nod to the US’s role in ceasefire negotiations. Meanwhile, Piers Morgan offered to invite the president and world’s richest man on his show to resolve their differences. “If you guys want to come on @PiersUncensored and duke this out for a few hours, I’ll make it happen..,” the television host wrote on X. 10:41 PM BST Musk unfollows key Trump allies Elon Musk has rebuked key Trump allies by unfollowing them on social media. The Tesla billionaire earlier unfollowed Stephen Miller, Mr Trump’s deputy chief of staff. Mr Miller, whose wife works as an adviser for Doge, has in recent days publicly disagreed with Mr Musk over his comments on the administration’s spending bill. The SpaceX founder has also unfollowed Charlie Kirk, a pro-Maga activist, who earlier hosted Mr Miller on his podcast. 10:10 PM BST Row hits Wall Street as investors turn cautious American shares fell today as Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s falling out intensified. The main S&P 500 index dropped by more than 0.5pc - having been in positive territory earlier - while the technology-dominated Nasdaq dropped 0.8pc. Investors in Tesla, which closed down 14.3pc, fear that Mr Trump might hinder the roll-out of self-driving cars in the US, hitting the company’s growth potential.“There is a fear that Trump is not going to play Mr Nice Guy when it comes to autonomous [cars],” said Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives. “The whole goal of robotaxis is to have them in 20 or 25 cities next year. If you start to heighten the regulatory environment, that could delay that path.” Meanwhile, Wall Street’s so-called “fear gauge”, the Vix, rose nearly 5pc as traders became more nervous about the future of the US economy. In the bond market, the effective cost of US government borrowing rose, with 10-year US Treasury notes rising to 4.395pc from 4.359pc yesterday night. 09:56 PM BST Trump advisers ‘force allies to pick sides’ Donald Trump’s advisers are reportedly prepared to force allies to pick sides in his escalating row with Elon Musk. Aides of the president are gearing up to go to war with his former adviser after a simmering row between two of the world’s most powerful men exploded on social media, according to The New York Times. Close allies of the president are said to have held multiple meetings today to deal with the fallout from Mr Musk’s posts on X. Meanwhile, allies of the tech billionaire are allegedly in a state of disbelief, saying they are glued to their screens and unsure what his strategy is. 09:46 PM BST Musk predicts recession within months Elon Musk has predicted the US will go into recession within months, following Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs. “The Trump tariffs will cause a recession in the second half of this year,” Mr Musk wrote on X. The Tesla billionaire previously called Mr Trump’s trade adviser Peter Navarro “dumber than a sack of bricks” for masterminding the tariffs policy, as he sought to secure an exemption. In filings with the US Trade Representative, SpaceX previously said it was currently unable to procure the equipment in the US and that they helped support American manufacturing. 09:39 PM BST The Bannonite wing of Maga celebrate Elon Musk’s libertarian, internationalist instincts were viewed with suspicion by a big chunk of the Maga coalition from the start. Steve Bannon, the populist broadcaster and former White House strategist, was one of the loudest voices opposed to his role, calling him a “parasitic illegal immigrant.” They are celebrating tonight. “Trump should waste no time canceling any and all SpaceX, Tesla, and X contracts with the U.S. government,” said Raheem Kassam, editor of the National Pulse and close ally of Mr Bannon. 09:37 PM BST Musk contracts could be cancelled An attempt by Donald Trump to axe government contracts with Elon Musk’s companies would be easier said than done. Mr Trump wrote on his social media site Truth Social: “The easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.” However, a breakdown in relations between the US government and Mr Musk’s SpaceX could cause serious problems for Nasa. SpaceX plays a critical role in the US government’s space programme. Its Falcon 9 rockets are reusable and relatively cheap, making Mr Musk’s company the world’s most popular launch provider. Nasa has come to rely on SpaceX, noting that it has saved the agency billions of dollars. 09:35 PM BST Steve Bannon urges Trump to deport Musk Steve Bannon has reportedly urged Donald Trump to deport Elon Musk as retribution for the tech billionaire’s outburst. The former Trump adviser, who has been a vocal critic of Mr Musk in recent months, has also advised the president to cancel all of the Tesla and SpaceX owner’s government contracts, according to The New York Times. “They should initiate a formal investigation of his immigration status because I am of the strong belief that he is an illegal alien, and he should be deported from the country immediately,” he told the paper. Bannon said the Trump administration should also investigate Mr Musk’s drug use and efforts to access a classified briefing on China, and added that the billionaire’s security clearance should be suspended. The host of the War Room podcast previously clashed with Mr Musk over skilled immigrant visas, calling the former Doge head a “toddler” for threatening to “go to war” over the issue. 09:29 PM BST Mike Johnson fires back at Musk comments House Speaker Mike Johnson has shot back at Elon Musk in a fiery exchange. “The Mike Johnson of 2023 is the SAME Mike Johnson who has always been a lifelong fiscal hawk - who now serves as speaker and is implementing a multi-stage plan to get our country back to fiscal responsibility and extraordinary economic growth,” Mr Johnson wrote. It comes after Mr Musk claimed the House speaker has changed since taking up the gavel. 09:28 PM BST Kanye West weighs in on Musk vs Trump row Kanye West, the disgraced rapper, has weighed in on the escalating row between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. West, a Trump supporter who has a history of antisemitic comments, called for the president and Tesla billionaire to make peace after an explosive row. “Broooos please noooooo,” West wrote on X, adding a hugging emoji. “We love you both so much.” 09:23 PM BST Musk pledges to decommission Nasa rocket as Trump row escalates Elon Musk has said he plans to decommission SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is used by Nasa, as his relationship with Donald Trump collapses. His comments came after the US president suggested he would cut Mr Musk’s government subsidies and contracts to save the government “billions and billions of dollars”, in what has quickly become a tit-for-tat war between the two men. Mr Musk wrote on social media: “In light of the President’s statement about cancellation of my government contracts, @SpaceX will begin decommissioning its Dragon spacecraft immediately.” The spacecraft is used by Nasa to deliver and collect astronauts from the International Space Station, along with dropping off cargo. 09:16 PM BST Tesla faceing $3bn hit from Trump spending bill Elon Musk’s Tesla is facing a $3bn (£2.2bn) hit from Donald Trump’s tax and spending Bill. Buried in the US president’s 1,000-page Bill are plans to eliminate a $7,500 tax incentive for electric vehicle (EV) buyers and ban a similar scheme in California, highlighting a potential reason that Mr Musk has vowed to “kill” the legislation. Wall Street analysts said axing the tax break for drivers would cost Tesla about $1.2bn, while the Californian ban threatens a further $2bn profit hit. The president’s “big, beautiful bill” has prompted a furious reaction from Mr Musk, who left his role as a White House cost-cutting tsar last week. The world’s richest man has since called the tax and spending legislation a “disgusting abomination” and called on US politicians to “kill the Bill”. He has now made a bombshell allegation that Mr Trump’s name features in the Epstein Files. Read Matt’s full story here. 09:14 PM BST Tesla shares plunge A war of words between Elon Musk and Donald Trump wiped off more than $180 billion from Tesla’s stock market value today. Shares fell as much as 17.7 per cent - the biggest fall in over four years - as the two allies publicly laid into each other. Mr Musk’s influence with the US president had been seen by investors as a boon for the company and its ability to navigate red tape. But it has also led to a backlash from buyers, with sales plunging 13pc in the first three months of the year. 09:12 PM BST Musk should have turned on me months ago, says Trump Donald Trump said that Elon Musk should have turned on him months ago. In a rare show of magnanimity from the president, he played down his former ally’s explosive criticism but said he wished it had only come sooner. “I don’t mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago. This is one of the Greatest Bills ever presented to Congress. It’s a Record Cut in Expenses, $1.6 Trillion Dollars, and the Biggest Tax Cut ever given,” he wrote on Truth Social. Mr Trump’s comments underline how crucial passage of the bill is to pursuing is legislative agenda, which Mr Musk is now threatening to derail. “If this Bill doesn’t pass, there will be a 68 per cent Tax Increase, and things far worse than that. I didn’t create this mess, I’m just here to FIX IT. This puts our Country on a Path of Greatness. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Mr Musk wrote. 09:08 PM BST Watch: Trump meets Epstein at a party Credit: NBC 09:07 PM BST FBI claimed Epstein killed himself The FBI plans to release video footage proving Jeffrey Epstein did kill himself, the bureau’s deputy director previously said. Dan Bongino said last month that he will share CCTV evidence that debunks conspiracy theories about the death of the paedophile financier, which happened in a New York prison cell in 2019 while he awaited trial. The failure of guards to prevent Epstein, who was on suicide watch, from taking his own life has sparked online speculation about a murder conspiracy involving his network of powerful friends and associates. However, Mr Bongino said the bureau will soon release a video that proves no one entered Epstein’s cell around the time of his death. Read the full article from Cameron Henderson here. 09:06 PM BST Woman testified Epstein introduced her to Trump A woman testifying at Maxwell’s 2020 trial under the pseudonym Jane claimed Epstein took her to meet Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort when she was just 14. She did not allege any improper behaviour by Mr Trump and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing. Virginia Roberts Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most high-profile victims, claimed she was working at Mar-a-Lago as a locker room attendant when she was “recruited” by Maxwell. Ms Giuffre took her own life at the age of 41 in April. 09:04 PM BST The truth will come out, says Musk 09:02 PM BST Democrats demand release of Epstein files House Democrats have jumped on Elon Musk’s allegations, demanding the release of the Epstein Files. The tech billionaire earlier claimed that the release of the full, unredacted files linking to the disgraced financier has been delayed because the president is implicated in them. “I called for the full release of the Epstein Files a month ago because of my suspicion that Attorney General Pam Bondi was concealing the files to protect Donald Trump,” Representative Dan Goldman, Democrat of New York, wrote on X. “Now my suspicion has been confirmed.” The official X page for the Democrats also wrote: “Kill the bill and release the Epstein files!” A hot-button topic among conspiracy theorists, the files have recently been brought to public attention after the Trump administration pledged to release them for public viewing. After an initial release of information in February, the full release was delayed, with Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, stating in May that there is no “specific timeline” for their publication. 08:54 PM BST Trump distanced himself from Epstein after arrest After Jeffrey Epstein’s arrest, Donald Trump distanced himself from the financier. “I was not a fan,” he told reporters at a July 2019 news conference while he was president. “I had a falling out with him a long time ago.” On Maxwell’s arrest in 2020, his words were warmer. “I haven’t really been following it too much. I just wish her well, frankly.” “I’ve met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach. But I wish her well, whatever it is,” he added. 08:51 PM BST Trump once called Epstein ‘terrific guy’ Conspiracy theorists have been abuzz with details of Donald Trump’s relationship with the paedophile since the horrors of his crimes first came to light. Elon Musk today added fuel to the fire by claiming Mr Trump’s name appears in a government dossier on the disgraced financier and sharing old footage of the two men together. While the pair knew of each other for decades, there were no new revelations in the so-called Epstein Files released by the administration earlier this year. Despite the misinformation, Mr Trump was at one point friends with Epstein. “I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy,” Trump told New York magazine in 2002, before there were any public allegations of wrongdoing. “He’s a lot of fun to be with,” Trump said then. “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side,” he added. A clip from the NBC archives showed the two chatting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate, pointing out women on the dance floor in 1992. The pair were also at an event at Mar-a-Lago in 2000, along with future first lady Melania and Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for grooming teenage girls to be abused by Epstein. 08:49 PM BST Musk has form levelling scurrilous accusations against enemies Elon Musk has form when it comes to levelling scurrilous accusations against foes, having previously labelled a British cave expert a “pedo guy” on Twitter. Vernon Unsworth, who helped rescue trapped Thai schoolboys in 2018, had clashed with the Tesla billionaire for his proposals to retrieve the children from a flooded cave with a mini-submarine. Mr Unsworth later sued for defamation, with his lawyer telling the court in his closing speech: “The biggest lie of them all was when [Mr Musk] told the world that Vernon Unsworth was a paedophile.” However, his case was unsuccessful, with Mr Musk arguing “pedo guy” was not meant to be taken literally, and that it had been commonly used as an insult when he grew up in South Africa. 08:47 PM BST Trump ‘disappointed’ with Musk Donald Trump attempted to quash Elon Musk’s criticism of his “big, beautiful bill” during an Oval Office meeting with Germany’s Freidreich Merz earlier today. Mr Musk in recent days labelled the legislation the “Debt Slavery Bill” in a sharp reversal from the good terms on which he left the White House last Friday. Speaking from the Oval Office, Mr Trump said he had a “good relationship” with Mr Musk but said “I don’t know if we will any more”. Mr Trump went on to say he was “surprised” by Mr Musk’s criticism after he was given a “wonderful send off” at the White House last week. The US president continued: “I’m very disappointed because Elon knew the inner workings of this bill...he only developed a problem when we knew we were going to cut the electric vehicle mandate.” “I’m very disappointed in Elon, I’ve helped him a lot.” 08:42 PM BST Pictured: Donald Trump once welcomed Epstein to beach resort 08:40 PM BST White House played down Musk feud The White House initially sought to play down rumours of a rift between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Last Friday, Mr Trump gave his Doge adviser a royal send-off in the Oval Office, presenting him with a golden key to the White House. After accepting the gift, Musk told reporters in the Oval Office that he would make good use of it. “I’ll continue to be visiting here and be a friend and adviser to the president,” he said. But just days later, Mr Trump began to blast his former boss and allies on social media, warning of reprisals at the midterm elections in 2026. In an apparent bid to play down tensions, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told reporters on Wednseday: “Look, the president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this Bill. “It doesn’t change the president’s opinion. This is one big, beautiful bill, and he’s sticking to it.” 08:35 PM BST Musk criticism boils over Elon Musk’s war of words with Donald Trump has boiled over after the Tesla billionaire accused the president of being an affiliate of Jeffrey Epstein. A feud between two of the world’s most powerful men has been simmering for days after Mr Musk claimed Mr Trump’s “big beautiful bill” was a “disgusting abomination”. Tensions first escalated after Mr Musk ridiculed the bill for driving up the deficit, which he had sought to bring down through his work at Doge.