The fight reflects the competing factions in Trump’s coalition.
By
April 8, 2025 5:32 pm ET
Senior Counselor to the President for Trade and Manufacturing Peter Navarro and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. PHOTO: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKICHIP SOMODEVIL/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
Elon Musk opined on the internet Tuesday that White House trade adviser Peter Navarro is “truly a moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks.” Mr. Navarro had told a TV show that Mr. Musk, CEO of Tesla, isn’t a real car manufacturer but a mere “assembler” of foreign parts. In another interview, Mr. Navarro denied a rift between them. But then Mr. Musk called him “Peter Retarrdo.”
This isn’t exactly Lincoln’s team of rivals, and we hesitate to devote attention to squabbling West Wing personalities, except that this feud illustrates the competing factions advising President Trump and that make up big chunks of his political coalition. Which side prevails more often is likely to determine whether Mr. Trump’s economic policy succeeds.
Mr. Musk is an erratic political messenger, but he’s right about at least two big things, and he also appears willing to speak truths that Mr. Trump is better off hearing. Mr. Musk believes in trade, and he recently said he hopes that the U.S. and Europe move “to a zero-tariff situation.” He has also pointed out, correctly, that most federal spending is for entitlement programs, though Mr. Trump has promised not to touch such benefits.
Broadly speaking, Mr. Musk represents a segment of Mr. Trump’s 2024 coalition—call it Silicon Valley MAGA—that is libertarianish and believes in freeing the U.S. economy to grow and dominate the future, benefiting all Americans. It favors pro-growth tax and regulatory policy and robust legal immigration to attract the world’s brightest minds.
Mr. Navarro is part of the Steve Bannon wing of MAGA, which wants to put U.S. industries behind the high tariff walls that Mr. Trump is now imposing. This faction distrusts corporations, especially Big Tech and pharma, and it doesn’t mind higher taxes and using government power to punish political enemies.
Mr. Navarro has the additional talent of saying whatever he thinks the boss wants to hear, including in 2020 when he wrote a report, titled “The Immaculate Deception,” suggesting Joe Biden stole the election. His willingness to toe the line probably helps to explain how Mr. Navarro has lasted in the White House so long, and these days he appears to be at the height of his influence with the President if the hyper-tariffs are a guide.
One way to interpret Mr. Musk’s bluntness lately is that he’s on the outs with Mr. Trump, or else he’ll soon be. We hope that isn’t the case. Mr. Musk has made some missteps, and he is far too forgiving of China’s Communist Party in our view.
But he isn’t a flunky whom Mr. Trump can consign to oblivion by firing, and he’s saying things the President ought to hear. He represents the aspirational wing of MAGA-land that is the best part of Trumponomics.
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Appeared in the April 9, 2025, print edition as ‘Why Musk vs. Navarro Matters’.
Earlier report on AXIOS:
“Boys will be boys,” White House says, as Musk calls Navarro “moron”
Elon Musk escalated his war of words with Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro on Tuesday, calling him “truly a moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks” over comments about Musk’s businesses.
Why it matters: The gloves are off, and Musk — who has already challenged Trump’s trade policy publicly — is now getting increasingly personal with the architect of that policy, too.
The big picture: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, asked for comment on the Musk-Navarro spat at the daily press briefing, repliedwith a smile: “Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue.”
- Musk, the 53-year-old Tesla CEO, is worth $350 billion and has unprecedented influence over the mechanics of government.
- Navarro, 75, is leading the administration’s effort to re-wire the global economy.
Catch up quick: It all started last Saturday, when a poster on X defended Navarro’s intellect as a voice on trade. Musk replied that Navarro’s Harvard Ph.D. suggested he had more ego than brains, and that he “ain’t built s–t.”
- Navarro, in TV appearances in recent days, pushed back, saying Musk wasn’t a car manufacturer, just an assembler of parts.
Driving the news: Musk’s had enough of that argument.
- “Navarro is truly a moron. What he says here is demonstrably false,” Musk wrote on X in response to a clip of Navarro on CNBC talking about Tesla and its supply chain.
- In the same thread, Musk called Navarro “dumber than a sack of bricks” and told him to go ask “Ron Vara” — the fictional economist Navarro quoted in his books.
The intrigue: There’s been little daylight between Trump and “first buddy” Musk until now.
- But Musk blasting Navarro, telling Italian politicians he wanted more free trade, and his brother calling the tariffs a destructive tax on consumers makes clear there’s now a rift between the two on a crucial issue.
What to watch: Trump hasn’t yet sounded off on Musk’s public agitation.
- It’s not clear how long that will last.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with White House comments.
Meanwhile, WTH do I know? If Musk isn’t a car builder because he uses parts from other manufacturers to assemble – then the same has to be said about various DoD aircraft contractors, about other automakers too.
Wasn’t a very brainiac or grownup thing to say.
…13 year old girl fights…c’mon guys…I’m hoping this is “political theater”…love you both!