Trump teases Musk at forum as once-frosty dynamic seems to take a turn
President Donald Trump may have made amends with SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, after referencing the billionaire in a speech Wednesday and after Musk attended a dinner at the White House Tuesday evening. While the two publicly exchanged harsh words in the spring after Musk left his post heading up the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), tensions appear to have simmered in the following months. “You’re so lucky I’m with you, Elon. I’ll tell you. Has he ever thanked me properly?” Trump said at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum on Wednesday in Washington. “Although I do let him buy other than electric cars, but these are minor details. You know, we had a mandate which even Elon thought was ridiculous, that everybody has to have an electric car by 2030. And once, fortunately, he said, that’s a ridiculous thing.” Trump’s comments came while discussing a portion of his massive tax and domestic policy measure known as the one “big, beautiful bill” that he signed in July, which included a new tax deduction on car loan interest for purchases made between 2025 and 2028 permitting car buyers the ability to write off up to $10,000 annually in interest for certain loans on brand new cars. After Trump’s speech, Musk posted on X: “I would like to thank President Trump for all he has done for America and the world.” TRUMP, SAUDI CROWN PRINCE MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN TO MEET AT WHITE HOUSE AMID DIPLOMATIC SHIFTS IN REGION Tension between Trump and Musk reached an all-time high in May after the two publicly aired their differences regarding the “big, beautiful, bill.” Musk was highly critical of the measure amid reports the measure would increase the federal deficit, while Trump Musk’s disdain for the bill was due to a provision that eliminated an electric vehicle tax credit that benefited companies like Tesla. REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS STAND FIRM AGAINST MUSK’S ‘KILL THE BILL’ ASSAULT ON TRUMP’S AGENDA The two hurled insults against one another in May and June, with Musk claiming that Trump wouldn’t have won the 2024 election without the billionaire’s support. Meanwhile, Trump accused Musk of going “CRAZY” over cuts to the electric vehicle credits, and said that Musk had been “wearing thin.” However, the two were seen together at conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral in Arizona in September. Musk also appeared at the White House Tuesday for a dinner during Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington. Other tech executives who attended the dinner included Apple CEO Tim Cook and Dell CEO Michael Dell. The White House and Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Trump explains trans sports controversy to Saudi investors who he says ‘don’t do a lot of transitioning’
President Donald Trump at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, said people from Saudi Arabia think Americans are “crazy” for advocating for transgender athletes in women’s sports. At the forum, hosted at the Kennedy Center, Trump described being shocked watching a congressman fighting for biological men playing in women’s sports, explaining a situation where a biological man broke a women’s weightlifting record. “The man was 119 pounds higher than a woman champion, who was a phenomenal champion,” Trump said. “Beat her by 119, and he was an average lifter prior to transitioning. A lot of the Saudis are sitting here saying, ‘What the hell is he talking about — transitioning?’” TRUMP SAYS MAMDANI ‘THINKS IT’S WONDERFUL TO HAVE MEN PLAYING IN WOMEN’S SPORTS,’ MOCKS TRANS WEIGHTLIFTER He went on to say, unlike the U.S., the Saudis “don’t do a lot of transitioning.” “The Saudis are saying, ‘What is he talking about?’” Trump said. “They’re saying, ‘What do you mean women are playing against men? No, that doesn’t happen, does it?’ Yeah, it does. These people are crazy.” A group of 130 congressional Democrats recently filed an amicus brief to the Supreme Court urging justices to rule in favor of Becky Pepper-Jackson, a trans teen from West Virginia who successfully challenged a state law barring biological males from competing in girls’ sports, and Lindsay Hecox, who successfully challenged an Idaho law to compete on Boise State’s women’s cross-country team. TRUMP WARNS CALIFORNIA OVER TRANSGENDER POLICIES AFTER ISSUE HITS HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL Lawmakers who signed onto the letter include Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. A New York Times/Ipsos survey in January found most Americans, including a majority of Democrats, do not think transgender athletes should compete against women in sports. Of the 2,128 participants, 79%, including 67% of those who identified as Democrats or leaning Democrat, said biological males who identify as women should not be allowed to compete against women. Fox News Digital’s Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
Dem senator divides party over controversial pardon proposal: ‘I don’t think it makes sense’
Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., called for an end to the presidential pardon through a post on X on Monday. “I’ve been in support of getting rid of a presidential pardon for either party. I don’t think it makes sense in the modern world. And we just saw why it’s a problem last week,” Slotkin said. “Last week, Donald Trump pardoned the CEO of a cryptocurrency company called Binance. This CEO had invested heavily in President Trump’s family crypto venture. I didn’t like it when Democrats did it, I don’t like it when Republicans do it,” Slotkin said. While many Democrats in the House of Representatives shared Slotkin’s concerns about the pardon’s use, members of the Judiciary Committee were split over whether lawmakers should eliminate the power outright. FELON FREED BY BIDEN ARRESTED AFTER SHOOTING, RAISING FEARS OF MORE ‘SECOND CHANCES’ GONE WRONG President Donald Trump’s pardoning of Changpeng Zhao, a tech billionaire who had been convicted of facilitating money laundering, is just the most recent controversy over the pardon power. Trump’s pardons for participants in the Jan. 6 riots — coupled with former President Joe Biden’s preemptive pardoning of his own family — have invited questions about its proper use. In light of Trump’s record on the power, Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., a member of the House Judiciary Committee, said he agreed with Slotkin. “I one thousand percent agree with her,” Lieu said. “It’s been abused.” JOHNSON ARGUES BIDEN PARDONS ‘INVALID’ AFTER BOMBSHELL AUTOPEN REPORT Other members said they had reservations about throwing it out completely. “In the past we have had presidents that have used pardons with a lot of thoughtfulness,” Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Calif., said. “We are now in an abnormal situation with a very rogue president who is not accountable to the American people or to Congress.” “I’m not trying to throw the baby out with the bath water. I do think it is a [power] that should be reserved because it’s been used actually with a lot of sincerity and thought. We should be focusing on getting rid of this rogue president rather than doing away with systems that have worked in the past.” Kamlager-Dove pointed to President Joe Biden’s commutation of Native American advocate Leonard Peltier’s sentence as one such example. He had been sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for the murder of a pair of FBI agents in 1975 but was released from prison earlier this year. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, echoed Kamlager-Dove’s thoughts. “I certainly think we need to analyze the systemic abuses that have been taking place. At the same time — that we maintain the power of clemency and mercy that has traditionally reposed in the executive branch,” Raskin said. BIDEN’S AUTO-PEN PARDONS DISTURBED DOJ BRASS, DOCS SHOW, RAISING QUESTIONS WHETHER THEY ARE LEGALLY BINDING While she wouldn’t support removing the presidential pardons, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., another member of the Judiciary Committee, would support limiting the power in some way. She acknowledged that any change to it would require a constitutional amendment — a long-shot reform that would require supermajority agreement among lawmakers. “In my mind, it’s about a narrow use,” Jayapal said. “It has to be much more tapered, and I’m not sure if you can make it that tapered — I would rather that than get rid of it.” Jayapal noted the country has adopted several constitutional amendments in the past. When asked if presidential powers still served a purpose, Lieu said he doesn’t know exactly, but believes its use has drifted from its original design. “Definitely not the role it’s playing now where Donald Trump is pardoning hardened criminals and his friends and allies — that’s not the framers’ vision of the pardon provision,” Lieu said.
A small Texas think tank cultivated COVID dissidents. Now they’re running U.S. health policy.
People with ties to Brownstone Institute have significant authority over access to vaccines and scientific research.
Gov. Greg Abbott was ordered to release emails with Elon Musk. Most of the 1,400 pages are blacked out.
The heavily redacted emails reveal little of the two men’s relationship.
Bell, Cecil | Paul
Relating to the provision by a political subdivision of credits against impact fees to builders and developers for certain water conservation and reuse projects.
Hefner | Ashby | Cook
Relating to certain files maintained by a law enforcement agency regarding certain employees of the agency.
Thompson
Relating to the calculation of the penalty and interest incurred on a delinquent ad valorem tax.
Bonnen | Martinez | Louderback
Relating to the authority of the comptroller to provide funding for the deployment and operation of certain emergency communication equipment.
Schofield
Relating to the rate at which interest accrues in connection with the deferral or abatement of the collection of ad valorem taxes on certain residence homesteads.