Elon Musk and Donald Trump sat down for a fun conversation about X

After a 42-minute delay, Musk began the stream by saying, “This massive attack illustrates that there is a lot of opposition to people who only hear what President Trump has to say.”

The two then engaged in a discussion that began with a 15-minute retelling of Trump’s perspective on the assassination attempt against him in mid-July — which the former president said at the RNC he would never discuss publicly again.

The conversation has at times gathered an audience of up to 1,324,994 people.

After the assassination attempt discussion, Trump and Musk continued to talk about illegal immigration, claiming that countries like Venezuela are sending “unproductive people” and “criminals,” “murderers” and “rapists” to the United States.

“Here’s what’s happening: Crime around the world is down,” Trump said. “And wait until you get the numbers that we have, you know, that’s migrant crime.”

The FBI’s 2024 Quarterly Crime Report shows a 15.2 percent drop in violent crime when comparing statistics from January through March 2023 to the same period in 2024.

During the discussion on illegal immigration, Trump launched his attacks on his current political rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Trump blamed for the ongoing conflict and the high rates of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border.

“We can’t have her, she’s incompetent — she’s as bad as Biden,” Trump said.

A potential role for Musk in a second Trump administration

Trump largely monopolized the conversation, with Musk only occasionally interjecting in the first hour of the call to engage the former president on topics such as illegal immigration. However, when the topic of government spending came up, Musk’s commitment became more pronounced.

Musk said he would be “happy to help” with a government efficiency commission, to which Trump seemed open, saying, “You’re the biggest cutter.”

“I won’t mention the name of the company, but they are going on strike. And you say, “It’s okay. You are all gone. You’re all gone.” So every one of you is gone and you are the greatest,” Trump said, praising Musk. “You would be very good. Oh, you would love it.”

The National Labor Relations Board ultimately rejected claims that Musk’s electric vehicle company, Tesla, illegally fired workers at one of its factories who were in the process of unionizing, Reuters reported last year. Tesla continues to have a reputation for its anti-union practices and brutal layoffs.

The Harris campaign seized on Trump’s praise of Musk for his strong anti-union stance, reposting a clip of the conversation with the caption: “Trump praises billionaire Elon Musk for firing workers who were striking for better wages and working conditions “.

Trump also said he would “need Elon Musk” to shut down the Department of Education and praised the Tesla CEO for moving SpaceX’s headquarters from California.

The conversation then turned to environmentalism and oil and gas, issues on which Musk – once a champion of the environment – described himself as a “moderate”.

“I don’t think we should denigrate the oil and gas industry,” said Musk, who won Trump’s endorsement.

The controversial history between Trump and Musk

Trump and Musk have forged a highly visible alliance over the past year, but their relationship hasn’t always been so cordial.

Musk was part of Trump’s business advisory groups during the former president’s first term. But in 2017, Musk left after Trump pulled out of the Paris Climate Agreement. At the time, Musk said in a tweet that “climate change is real” and said the US leaving the deal was not good for the country or the world.

President Joe Biden rejoined the Paris Agreement in January 2021.

But in May 2022, Musk criticized the Biden administration, arguing that it had gone out of its way to “ignore” Tesla. The business leader then announced he would support the GOP.

In recent years, Musk has embraced more conservative positions on X, particularly regarding his opposition to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and his views on gender identity.

And Musk has connected with Trump on everything from their mutual disapproval of Biden’s handling of the presidency to their views on immigration and border security.

While Musk’s public statements have increasingly hinted at his support for the GOP nominee, it wasn’t until the July 13 assassination attempt against Trump that Musk came out in support of the former president, offering his full support.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.