Aboard Air Force One, President Donald Trump appeared with his signature white “USA” cap pulled low — the backdrop to a week defined by one of the most dramatic ruptures of his second term: a public falling-out with Elon Musk.
Amid fiery rhetoric, Trump openly threatened to revoke Musk’s billions in federal contracts, signaling what critics have long accused — that the president treats the government as a personal instrument to reward loyalty and punish dissent.
This kind of statement, once enough to spark a congressional inquiry, now barely causes a ripple. In today’s Washington, it’s business as usual.
“It’s just more proof Trump sees the state as an extension of himself,” said Trevor Potter, president of the Campaign Legal Center and a former Republican FEC chair. “This is a textbook abuse of power.”
Trump’s second term has become a sustained campaign of “retribution,” a term he embraced during his campaign and has executed with vigor since returning to office.
He has targeted prosecutors, law firms, media outlets, and former allies — all for perceived disloyalty.
He’s stripped officials of clearances and security details, and ordered investigations into political rivals, including an inquiry into President Biden’s use of an autopen — a tool Trump himself once used.
In one executive order, Trump directed the DOJ and DHS to investigate Chris Krebs, the former cybersecurity chief who rejected Trump’s 2020 election fraud claims.
The rationale: Krebs “baselessly denied” a stolen election — grounds enough, Trump argued, for federal scrutiny.
Trump, now the first convicted felon elected president, has also blurred the line between public office and personal profit. In just over four months, he, his family, and their business associates have amassed hundreds of millions through cryptocurrency ventures and international deals tied to government policy.
Musk, a major Trump donor in 2024, emerged as a prime example of this fusion of public and private interests. Granted a special status in government while maintaining his business empire, Musk wielded wide influence across federal agencies — many of which were conveniently shielded from his own restructuring efforts.
SpaceX alone secured nearly $3 billion in federal contracts last year. But tensions exploded after Musk’s top NASA pick, Jared Isaacman, was found to have donated to Democrats. Trump rescinded the nomination and, after Musk criticized his tax policy, publicly vowed to cancel his federal subsidies.
“The easiest way to save money in our Budget… is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts,” Trump posted online.
Some legal scholars brushed it off as bluster. “Trump often uses social media for rhetorical effect,” said Michael McConnell, a former federal judge. But allies like Steve Bannon urged Trump to go further — even calling for Musk to be investigated and deported.
The White House offered no direct comment on whether it was appropriate for the president to retaliate against critics.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt simply stated, “President Trump is focused on making our country great again and passing the One Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Yet Trump doubled down in an NBC interview, warning Musk not to back Democrats: “If he does, he’ll have to pay the consequences.”
While some of Musk’s contracts — especially with NASA — may be hard to undo, few doubt Trump’s willingness to try. “We’ve seen it time and again,” said Andrew Weissmann, former deputy to special counsel Robert Mueller. “
He targets those who cross him — Harvard, law firms, media outlets. Now it’s Musk.”
This isn’t new. During his first term, Trump pushed to block business rivals like Jeff Bezos from winning federal contracts and tried to raise USPS rates to hurt Amazon. He even pressured the DOJ to intervene in media mergers he didn’t like — actions many aides resisted, but which Trump often assumed were carried out at his direction.
Today, federal agencies under Trump — including the FCC — are probing CBS, which Trump is simultaneously suing for $20 billion. While the FCC claims the inquiry is unrelated, even conservative legal scholars are uneasy about the precedent.
The SEC, now led by Trump appointees, recently paused a fraud case against Chinese billionaire Justin Sun, a major investor in a Trump-linked crypto project. Sun was a guest at a recent White House gala.
What makes this term different is a key Supreme Court ruling: presidents are immune from prosecution for “official acts.” Trump now asserts that his actions — however retaliatory — fall under that definition. And with that protection, he’s made clear: he will wield presidential power not just to govern, but to settle scores.
Source: New York Times
