President Donald Trump said he had no plans to speak to onetime ally Elon Musk and added that he was still looking at canceling the billionaire’s government contracts — an indication that their public feud is far from over.
“We’ll take a look at everything,” Trump told reporters on Friday. “It’s a lot of subsidy.”
But Trump added, “only if it’s to be fair for him and for the country.”
Trump’s comments came one day after a volatile public spat that saw the president and the world’s richest man resort to personal attacks in a feud spurred by disagreement over a massive tax package that Musk opposes.
Musk late Thursday showed a willingness to de-escalate the fight, but Trump said he had no intention of reaching out.
“I don’t have any plans,” Trump said, when asked if he was going to speak to Musk.
See also: Musk, Trump feud explodes into threats and recriminations
On Thursday, the break-up tanked the share price of Tesla Inc, the company Musk leads, but the stock pared some losses on Friday. Other equities and digital assets with ties to Trump or Musk also fell in the wake of their clash.
Musk’s companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, benefit from billions in federal contracts or subsidies. SpaceX, one of the world’s most valuable startups with a market value of US$350 billion, has received more than US$22 billion in unclassified contracts from the Defense Department and NASA since 2000, according to data from Bloomberg Government.
See also: Trump asks congress to slash funds for NPR, PBS and foreign aid
Money From Government Contracts Has Skyrocketed for Musk’s Companies | Funds paid out from unclassified government contracts by fiscal year
A White House official earlier Friday said Trump had not taken any action to cut off ties between the government and Musk’s companies beyond a social media post on Thursday raising that threat. The official also said that Trump was moving ahead and focusing on his economic agenda instead of the fight with Musk.
The president offered praise for Musk’s role heading the Department of Government Efficiency, a federal cost-cutting effort and wished him luck.
Trump said Musk “helped us a lot” and that he hopes he “does well with Tesla.”
Trump on Friday told reporters that he had not thought about whether he will keep Tesla vehicle he got earlier this year during a White House event. That event offered a public boost for Musk during a time when his company was facing protests and vandalism over his work with the Trump administration.
