White House responded to the public spat between Elon Musk and Peter Navarro over the Trump tariff and downplayed it saying, ‘boys will be boys’. “These are obviously two individuals who have very different views on trade and on tariffs,” Leavitt said during her White House press briefing. “Boys will be boys and we will let their public sparring continue.”
As Elon Musk made it clear that he was not on board with the Trump tariffs that made him lose billions, he targeted Peter Navarro, one of the masterminds of the tariffs. Musk questioned his Harvard PhD in Economics as he pushed for a zero tariff situation between the US and Europe. Navarro, in his reaction to Musk’s jibe, said Elon Musk is a car assembler who relies on imported parts and hence he’s speaking his part.
“When it comes to tariffs and trade, we all understand in the White House and the American people understand that Elon is a car manufacturer. But he’s not a car manufacturer, he’s a car assembler in many cases,” Navarro said.
“Navarro is truly a moron. What he says here is demonstrably false,” Musk said in a post on X in a response to a video clip of Navarro’s interview. “Tesla has the most American-made cars. Navarro is dumber than a sack of bricks.”
“By any definition whatsoever, Tesla is the most vertically integrated auto manufacturer in America with the highest percentage of US content. Navarro should ask the fake expert he invented, Ron Vara,” Musk said.
“I think it also speaks to the president’s willingness to hear from all sides that he has people at the highest levels of this government, in this White House, who have very diverse opinions, on very diverse issues,” Leavitt said of the sparing between Musk and Navarro. “But the president takes all opinions in mind, and then he makes the best decision based on the best interests of the American public.”
