Poll: 52% of Americans side with 'neither' Trump nor Musk in public fight

Carson Swick, The Baltimore Sun on Jun 6, 2025

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If a new YouGov poll is any indication, the public is still digesting this week’s explosive fallout between President Donald Trump and former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk.

Some 52% of respondents to Thursday’s poll said they side with “neither” Trump nor Musk as the world’s most powerful man and world’s richest man, respectively, squared off on social media. Trump had the clear advantage among those with stronger opinions, as 28% of respondents backed the president compared to just 8% who sided with Musk and 11% who were unsure.

The public breakup between Trump and Musk appears to stem from disagreements over the Trump-backed “One, Big, Beautiful Bill.” Musk has criticized the bill for increasing the federal government’s debt ceiling, a move he argues makes his cost-cutting work at DOGE obsolete.

Trump responded that Musk was “wearing thin” by the end of his time at DOGE and “went CRAZY!” The president then threatened to cut government contracts for Musk’s companies, a move the YouGov poll showed was supported by 41% of respondents, while 21% opposed and 38% were unsure.

More Democrats (61%) than independents (39%) and Republicans (23%) favor Trump’s move to cut Musk’s government contracts, according to the poll. This trend may reflect the changing image of Musk-owned companies like Tesla, which has seen plummeting electric vehicle sales among its traditionally wealthy, liberal customer base so far this year.

The public is also split on whether Trump and Musk will work together again in the future, with 28% of respondents saying they will, 31% saying they will not and 41% saying they aren’t sure.

Trump and Musk were expected to talk it out on Friday but the president is now “not particularly interested” in speaking to him, according to multiple outlets.

The feud grew increasingly personal on Thursday, culminating with Musk saying Trump was “in the Epstein files” and did not follow through on a promise to release the files because they would implicate him. Jeffrey Epstein, a financier and convicted sex offender, hosted celebrities and underage girls on his private Caribbean island before suspiciously taking his life in prison in 2019.

Musk’s Epstein allegation prompted some social media users to characterize his fight with Trump as “Drake vs. Kendrick for Republicans,” an allusion to Kendrick Lamar’s 2024 hit song “Not Like Us” — which accuses Canadian rapper Drake of pedophilia and being disingenuous. Lamar performed the song during his Super Bowl LIX halftime show, which was criticized by many conservative commentators.

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