what the polls say about who the public thinks won
- Written by Paul Whiteley, Professor, Department of Government, University of Essex
Many people thought that the close relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk would end badly[1], since they both have the hubris that comes from success and power. One is arguably the most powerful politician in the world and the other the richest man.
That said, most people were not prepared for the rapid breakdown in their relationship and the slanging match[2] that took place after Musk spectacularly fell out with the US president. This was magnified by the fact that both have their own influential social media sites (X and Truth Social) and so the divorce was very, very public[3].
More recently Musk has rowed back on the comments he made about Trump after leaving his role as a “special government employee”[4] of the administration[5], and says he went “too far”[6]. But Trump might have a long memory for grievances, so it remains to be seen if the relationship can be patched up.
