Tensions between US President Donald Trump and tech mogul Elon Musk have reignited, with Trump now threatening to unleash the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) , a  body Musk once helped establish, on the billionaire’s companies amid their growing fallout over a controversial budget proposal.

"Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far," Trump posted on social media. "Perhaps we should have DOGE take a good, hard, look at this? BIG MONEY TO BE SAVED!!!"

The statement appeared to be a veiled warning to Musk, whose electric vehicle and space companies benefit from substantial federal support. Musk, in a quick and blunt response, wrote: "I am literally saying CUT IT ALL. Now."

Musk has been a vocal critic of Trump's latest budget proposal, dubbed the "big, beautiful bill," claiming it contradicts the mission of Doge, which was created to identify and reduce government waste.

Their relationship, once seemingly close, began to sour publicly last month when they exchanged sharp words before Musk appeared to soften his position, only for the feud to resurface during the ongoing budget debates.

Congress is currently considering the legislation, which increases spending in areas such as border security, defence, and energy production. These increases would be partially offset by contentious cuts to healthcare and food-support programmes.

While Trump’s Republican Party commands a majority in both chambers, a number of Republican lawmakers have joined Democrats in opposing the bill.

Musk previously headed Doge before falling out with the Trump administration over the bill, particularly provisions that would end incentives for buying electric vehicles,  a direct hit to Tesla, one of Musk’s flagship ventures. Trump has claimed this is the real source of Musk’s outrage.

"He's upset that he's losing his EV mandate, he's very upset, he could lose a lot more than that, I can tell you that," Trump said at a press briefing on Tuesday.
"Doge is the monster that might have to go back and eat Elon. He gets a lot of subsidies," he added.

Musk, however, insists his opposition to the bill is driven by principle rather than personal interest. He has consistently said he supports deep spending cuts across the board, regardless of the sector impacted.

The bill, if approved, would add an estimated $3.3 trillion to the national debt , a figure Musk has highlighted in a series of posts on his social media platform, X.

"When are they going to flatten this curve?" he wrote, sharing a graph tracking the rising national debt. In another post, he criticised lawmakers who campaigned on reducing spending but supported the bill:"Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame!"

He warned that he would target these lawmakers in next year’s primary races and even hinted at forming a new political party to challenge both Republicans and Democrats.

Despite Trump’s criticism over EV subsidies, Musk appeared unfazed, reposting an interview clip in which he argued that eliminating such incentives would actually strengthen Tesla’s position in the market:"Removing them would see Tesla’s competitive position would improve significantly."