Elon Musk revolutionized the electric car and rocket industries by applying the Silicon Valley mantra of moving fast and breaking things. But as the face of Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, Musk is discovering that the engineering skills that made him the world’s richest man don’t always translate to politics. This was on vivid display last week when The New York Times broke the news about a contentious meeting at the White House that produced a heated exchange between Cabinet secretaries and Musk.
According to sources inside and outside the White House whom I spoke with, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy lit into Musk for slashing their agencies’ staffs without their approval. Musk shot back that the secretaries lacked the conviction to fire people. A Trump ally briefed on the meeting said the level of vitriol was historic. He compared the blowup to the legendary White House clash between General Curtis LeMay and President John F. Kennedy during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. “It was, like, one step short of a fistfight,” the ally said.
The intensity of the debate might have been historic, but fighting inside the Trump administration isn’t new. Trump’s first term was roiled by well-publicized feuds among West Wing factions. Warring camps were split between MAGA populists Steve Bannon and Stephen Miller on one side and so-called globalists on the other, represented by Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and then National Economic Council director Gary Cohn. Trump’s disciplined 2024 presidential campaign was supposed to usher in a leak-free White House, but that was before Musk joined the team.
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According to sources, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles has been quietly leading the behind-the-scenes effort to clip Musk’s wings. Since early February, Wiles has been frustrated that Musk kept her in the dark about his agency-gutting plans. Republican senators expressed concerns last month about Musk’s erratic staffing cuts when Wiles attended a lunch on Capitol Hill. Sources told me that Rubio and other Cabinet secretaries also vented to Wiles about Musk. According to one White House source, Wiles encouraged the secretaries to “speak their minds” when they met with Trump. Another Republican close to the White House said the Cabinet secretaries would not have confronted Musk without Wiles’s tacit approval.
“You’re going after Trump’s guy in front of Trump,” the Republican said.
Wiles declined to comment. Representatives for Rubio and Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Historically, Trump has fostered a Lord of the Flies management style, with his advisers battling one another for his approval. Trump also has no problem with advisers turning on someone whom Trump has already cast out of his inner sanctum. What Trump doesn’t countenance is opposition to his agenda, which he equates with disloyalty. That is why attacking Musk could be so dangerous for Rubio: Trump has so far allowed Musk to be a de facto proxy in his campaign to slash the government. Going after Musk is, in effect, going after Trump.
Over the weekend, Rubio and Musk worked to defuse tensions. The pair reportedly had dinner with Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday. Rubio then thanked DOGE in a post on X on Monday and confirmed that 83% of USAID programs would be canceled. Whether the détente holds remains to be seen. The Cabinet Room fight could represent a high-water mark for Musk’s influence. Trump reportedly told the group that Musk no longer had the power to cut staff and would only “advise” Cabinet secretaries. But another Republican close to Musk and Trump laughed when I asked if Musk would abide by Trump’s dictum.
“Elon won’t be reined in,” the source said.
