Anna Hartz
Elon Musk Criticizes Trump’s Tariff Plans
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Billionaire Elon Musk has been actively involved in trying to influence U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff plans.
According to sources close to Musk, he directly asked Trump to drop the new tariffs.
Musk had criticized one of Trump’s key advisers, Peter Navarro, on social media for his aggressive tariff strategy, according to Digi24.
After this, Musk went directly to Trump and asked him to cancel the tariffs, though his request has not been successful so far.
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This marks the first significant disagreement between Musk and Trump. On Monday, Trump threatened to add a new 50% tariff on Chinese imports, adding to the 34% tariffs already announced the previous week.
The president has shown willingness to negotiate some aspects of his policy. In the meantime, Musk posted a video on X in which the late economist Milton Friedman discussed the advantages of international trade cooperation.
Musk also criticized Navarro, writing on social media that having a Harvard PhD in economics is a “bad thing, not a good thing.” Navarro declined to comment.
Musk has long been opposed to tariffs, even since Trump’s first term. During that time, Tesla filed a lawsuit against tariffs on Chinese imports.
Musk’s latest comments reflect his desire for a “free trade area” between Europe and the U.S. He has argued that both regions should work towards eliminating tariffs altogether.
He also expressed his hope for greater freedom for people to travel and work across the two regions.
Business leaders who supported Trump have been disappointed by his high tariffs. Some have even tried to influence his policies by lobbying the Trump administration for more moderate approaches.
In addition, many of these business leaders believe that Trump’s tariffs could harm both the tech industry and the broader economy.
Musk’s involvement in this effort comes as his company, Tesla, faces a drop in quarterly sales.
The company’s stock has fallen significantly, down more than 42% this year, with Musk acknowledging that the tariffs have had a “significant” impact on Tesla.
