Elon Musk called President Donald Trump’s top trade adviser Peter Navarro a “moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks” Tuesday as the tariff debate continues to expose rifts inside the Republican administration and among the president’s closest allies.
Musk was responding to comments Navarro made on CNBC on Monday claiming that Musk, who owns electric car company Tesla, is “not a car manufacturer – he’s a car assembler.”
“If you go to his Texas plant, a good part of the engines that he gets (which in the EV case are the batteries) come from Japan and come from China,” Navarro said. “The electronics come from Taiwan… what we want — and the difference is in our thinking and Elon’s on this — is that we want the tires made in Akron. We want the transmissions made in Indianapolis. We want the engines made in Flint and Saginaw. And we want the cars manufactured here.”
“Navarro is truly a moron. What he says here is demonstrably false,” Musk responded.
The billionaire Trump adviser, who has led efforts to slash federal agencies through the Department of Government Efficiency, added that “Tesla has the most American-made cars. Navarro is dumber than a sack of bricks.”
The comments are another example of the tensions among Trump’s senior advisors that are spilling into public view as the second-term president digs in on tariffs.
On Sunday billionaire Trump backer Bill Ackman wrote on social media that the tariffs would cause an “economic nuclear winter” and asked the president to pause them. Other high-profile Trump supporters such as Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy and high-profile podcast host Joe Rogan have raised concerns about the tariffs.
Musk-Navarro tensions brewing
Tension between Musk and Navarro has been brewing over the tariffs.
On Saturday, Musk responded to an X user who shared a video of Navarro promoting tariffs. The user noted that Navarro has a doctorate in economics from Harvard, holding him out as a credible expert.
Musk responded that “A PhD in Econ from Harvard is a bad thing, not a good thing.”
Navarro returned fire, telling Fox News on Sunday that Musk’s Teslas “have big parts of that car from Mexico, China — the batteries come from Japan or China; the electronics come from Taiwan.”
“We understand what’s going on here,” the White House trade advisor said. “Elon sells cars. He’s simply protecting his own interests.”
Navarro shrugged off the dispute with Musk when asked about it on CNBC Monday, saying he hadn’t spoken to Musk but “we’ll speak. I’ll probably see him today” in the Oval Office.
“It’s no big deal,” Navarro added.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the public clash between Musk and Navarro as an example of the administration’s transparency.
“We are the most transparent administration in history, expressing our disagreements in public.” Leavitt told CNBC.
