Donald Trump launched into an F-bomb rant to stop Elon Musk from attending a highly classified government meeting on China – amid mounting concerns over his business ties with Beijing, it’s been reported.
According to Axios, the US President reacted angrily to the news of Musk’s planned attendance, reportedly telling staff: “What the f**k is Elon doing there? Make sure he doesn’t go.” The contents of the meeting remain unknown, but Trump’s intervention comes at a critical moment in the ongoing trade war between the US and China. While he praised Musk in the past and seemed happy to involve him in crucial government matters as a special employee, officials say this meeting crossed a line. “POTUS still very much loves Elon, but there are some red lines,” one government official told Axios. “Elon has a lot of business in China, and he has good relations there, and this briefing just wasn’t the right thing.”
The move follows a broader effort by Trump to rein in Musk’s influence. Last month, Cabinet members reportedly grew frustrated after the tech billionaire, in his role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), issued staff firing mandates without consultation.
Trade tensions with China have meanwhile escalated sharply. Trump recently imposed a 125% tariff on Chinese imports, on top of a 20% fentanyl-related levy introduced earlier this year – bringing the effective tariff rate to 145%. In retaliation, China raised its own tariffs on US goods from 84% to 125%.
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China’s finance ministry issued a strong warning, saying: “Even if the US continues to impose higher tariffs, it will no longer make economic sense and will become a joke in the history of the world economy… If the US continues to play the tariff numbers game, China will ignore it. However, if the US insists on continuing to substantially infringe on China’s interests, China will resolutely counterattack and fight to the end.”
Markets around the world plunged to almost record-low levels as soon as Trump’s tariffs went into effect, before returning to normal following a 90-day pause for countries other than China. The EU followed suit, pausing its own planned tariffs while warning that “all options remain on the table.”
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