Trump and Musk sit side by side, months after messy split
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US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk shaking hands in a skybox at State Farm Stadium during the memorial service for right-wing leader Charlie Kirk in Glendale, Arizona, on Sept 21.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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GLENDALE – Mr Donald Trump sat side by side with billionaire Elon Musk, a once-trusted adviser with whom the US President had a spectacular public falling out, at a memorial event for right-wing leader Charlie Kirk
Mr Trump chatted in a manner that appeared friendly with Mr Musk, who once led the Republican’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which took a hatchet to the US federal workforce and agencies when Mr Trump took office for his second term.
The pair sat in the stands of a stadium in Glendale, Arizona, where tens of thousands had gathered to pay tribute to Mr Kirk, who was shot dead on Sept 10
Video of the two sharing a handshake was shared by the official White House account on social media platform X, which Mr Musk owns.
Mr Musk donated more than US$270 million (S$346.8 million) to Mr Trump’s presidential campaign, barnstorming key battleground states for the Republican.
After the election, he oversaw the launch of the Doge, a controversial initiative that eliminated thousands of government jobs deemed by the agency to be part of a pattern of waste, fraud and abuse.
But Mr Musk broke with Mr Trump over the White House’s flagship tax and spending Bill, which Mr Musk called “utterly insane and destructive”.
After the falling out, Mr Musk went as far as to announce he was launching his own “America First” party, but little has materialised so far.
Mr Musk on his X account posted an image of him and Mr Trump sitting together at the memorial, captioning it: “For Charlie.” AFP
