White House trade adviser Peter Navarro fired back at billionaire Elon Musk after the Tesla CEO attacked him over President Trump’s tariff policy. The clash came to light during a Sunday interview on Fox News, where Navarro was asked about Musk’s recent rants on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Fox News host Alexis McAdams brought up Musk’s complaints, noting that the Tesla CEO had personally criticized Navarro. “He also took a shot at you personally on X. And he’s going against the administration with respect to the tariff policy,” McAdams pointed out. “The president has said in the coming months, he may leave the administration. Peter, is there a rift internally?”
Navarro quickly dismissed any notion of a rift. “No, I mean, look, Elon, look, Elon, when he’s in his DOGE lane is great,” Navarro said. “But we understand what’s going on here.”
Navarro then highlighted Musk’s position, suggesting that Musk’s frustration may stem from personal losses tied to the tariffs. Musk has been publicly ranting over the recent drop in Tesla’s stock price, which he blames on the tariffs. According to reports, Musk has lost over $11 billion since Trump announced the tariffs, a massive hit to his wealth. Navarro didn’t shy away from addressing this.
“Elon sells cars, and he’s in his Texas plant assembling cars that have big parts of that car from Mexico, China, the batteries come from Japan or China, the electronics come from Taiwan, and he’s simply protecting his own interests as any business person would do,” Navarro said. “We’re more concerned about Detroit building Cadillacs with American engines.”
Despite the tension, Navarro claimed there was no internal division within the White House.
“Look, Elon, he’s got X, he’s got a big microphone,” Navarro stated. “We don’t mind him saying whatever he wants, but just the American people need to understand that we understand what that’s all about. And it’s fine. It’s fine.”
Watch the interview below from Fox News.
