President Trump is not letting his former senior advisor Elon Musk off the hook after last week’s nasty public falling out between the two men. The president is now warning the billionaire that there will be “very serious consequences” if Mr. Musk chooses to start backing Democrats in some kind of revenge plot. 

Over the course of just 48 hours this week, the close friendship between Messrs. Trump and Musk that the two had enjoyed for the better part of a year fell apart dramatically. Mr. Trump said he was “disappointed” that Mr. Musk was not backing his signature legislative item, which led the billionaire on a spree of social media posts. Earlier in the week, Mr. Musked called for all politicians supporting the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to be kicked out of office. 

“In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people,” Mr. Musk said of the legislation.

In an interview with NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Mr. Trump showed no signs of actively wanting to repair that relationship with Mr. Musk. When asked if he wanted to see things return to the way they were, he simply said, “No.”

Mr. Trump also said that he “would assume” his relationship with Mr. Musk is over. “I’m too busy doing other things,” he told the show’s host, Kristen Welker. “I have no intention of speaking to him.”

During their public spat on their two dueling social media platforms on Thursday, Mr. Trump’s most serious broadside was aimed directly at Mr. Musk’s wallet. 

In a post on Truth Social, the president mused that if the billionaire was so concerned about government spending and the national debt, then the White House could start looking “to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.”

The president warned again on Sunday that there could be “very serious consequences” for Mr. Musk should he decide to turn his back on the Republican Party and start funding Democrats in 2026. 

“He’ll have to pay very serious consequences if he does that,” Mr. Trump said of Mr. Musk using his billions to go after the GOP. 

By Sunday, Mr. Musk’s rage against the president seemed to have subsided for the most part. Over the weekend the billionaire took a break from posting direct attacks at the president and instead was spreading messages on social media about his tech companies, the protests at Los Angeles, and general ideas about the importance of lowering government spending. 

Mr. Trump told NBC News that Mr. Musk’s comments were especially offensive this past week because of the office that Mr. Trump occupies. “I think it’s a very bad thing, because he’s very disrespectful. You could not disrespect the office of the president,” Mr. Trump said Sunday. 

For the most part, the president had been dodging direct questions about Mr. Musk’s criticisms and the accusation that he himself is “in” the so-called “Epstein files.” The president’s gentle touch with Mr. Musk marks one of the few times that Mr. Trump himself has not gone completely scorched-earth against someone who had criticized him. 

“I hope he does well with Tesla,” Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One this weekend after being asked if he would ditch the red electric car he now keeps at the White House. “I just wish him well.”