Elon Musk vs Peter Navarro: Tariff feud exposes deep divide in Trump trade team
Tensions have surfaced in the White House as Elon Musk openly criticized Peter Navarro, Donald Trump’s chief trade adviser, over the president’s sweeping tariffs. Navarro responded sharply, highlighting the growing divide over the administration’s trade policies.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO’s remarks came after a video of Navarro discussing tariffs on CNN surfaced on Musk’s social media platform, X. A user on the platform praised Navarro, citing his PhD in economics from Harvard University.
“A PhD in Econ from Harvard is a bad thing, not a good thing. Results in the ego/brains>>1 problem,” Musk wrote in one post. Navarro earned a PhD in economics from Harvard in the 1980s.
Musk escalated further, replying “Yup” to a quote that read: “In every disaster throughout American history, there always seems to be a man from Harvard in the middle of it.”
In another post, when a user defended Navarro, Musk responded, “He ain’t build s**t.”
MUSK WANTS ‘ZERO TARIFF’ ZONE BETWEEN US AND EU
Elon Musk, in a video conference with Matteo Salvini, the leader of Italy’s League party, during their congress in Florence on Saturday, shared his vision for a future “zero-tariff zone” and highlighted the importance of strengthening the relationship between the United States and Europe.
“Ideally, there will be a zero-tariff zone in the future with a free trade zone between Europe and North America,” Musk said during the call. “If people wish to work in Europe or wish to work in North America, they should be allowed to do so in my view,” he added. Musk noted that he had shared this opinion with the US president as well.
Salvini thanked Musk for his appearance in an X post.
NAVARRO HITS BACK AT MUSK
Peter Navarro denied any rift between Musk and the administration over tariff policies, suggesting that Musk’s comments were driven by his business interests.
“Elon when he’s in his DOGE lane is great, but we understand what’s going on here. Elon sells cars. He’s simply protecting his own interests,” Navarro told Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures. Navarro further said that Tesla’s supply chain is likely to face challenges under the new tariff regime. While Teslas are assembled in Texas, many of their components come from countries like China, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, and others.
Despite the public criticism, Navarro denied a personal rift with Musk.
Last Wednesday, Trump announced the most extensive set of US tariffs during his “Liberation Day” event. A 10% baseline tariff took effect on Saturday, with higher, country-specific tariffs scheduled for this Wednesday. Peter Navarro is a key figure behind Trump’s tariff policies. He is a strong advocate for them and is widely regarded as one of their main architects.
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