Elon Musk is set to interview Donald Trump on the social media platform X.
The former US president – whose account on X (when it was known as Twitter) was suspended in 2021 after his supporters stormed the US Capitol – returned to the platform ahead of the event, making several posts.
Musk teased the “live conversation” with Trump, saying it would be “unscripted” and therefore “highly entertaining”.
Here’s what you need to know about the conversation – and the history between the pair.
Tensions between Trump and Musk
Much of the pair’s initial disagreements revolved around Musk’s electric car maker Tesla, because Trump has been a longstanding critic of electric vehicles.
Tensions first bubbled in June 2017, five months into Trump’s presidency, when Musk quit White House advisory panels because the administration withdrew from the Paris Agreement, a landmark 2016 treaty meant to tackle climate issues globally.
“Climate change is real,” Musk wrote at the time. “Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world.”
Musk shifts stance on Biden
After Trump lost his 2020 re-election bid, Musk said he was “super fired up” about US President Joe Biden’s climate-change agenda and optimistic “about the future of sustainable energy.”
The South African-born billionaire had already suggested he predominantly voted for the Democrats after becoming a US citizen in 2002.
But it was seemingly Musk’s frustrations with Trump’s successor which proved the catalyst for his political shift.
In 2021, he began to distance himself from Biden when the White House didn’t invite Tesla to a gathering of electric vehicle (EV) makers, and in 2022 claimed he had “reluctantly voted for Biden over Trump” in the 2020 election.
Musk reverses Trump ban – but it fails to stop bickering
In May 2022, before he owned X, Musk said he would reverse Trump’s permanent ban on the platform. It was a pledge he stuck to once his $44bn X takeover went through.
However, it wasn’t enough to calm tensions between the two, as Trump took aim at Musk during a rally in July 2022.
He claimed the Tesla owner had told him in a private conversation that he voted for him over Biden in the 2020 election.
“Another bullshit artist,” Trump said of Musk, who denied voting for him and tweeted saying: “I don’t hate the man, but it’s time for Trump to hang up his hat and sail into the sunset.”
In 2023, Musk was asked how he’d vote if Trump and Biden faced off again in the 2024 election.
“I think I would not vote for Biden,” he said, but stopped short of endorsing Trump and simply said: “This is definitely a difficult choice here.”
Musk escalates rhetoric
At one point, Musk revealed he would back Republican governor Ron DeSantis if he ran in the 2024 presidential race. But DeSantis, who was rivalling Trump for the Republican presidential candidate spot, suspended his campaign in January 2024 after the former president scored a record-breaking victory in the Republican Party’s Iowa caucuses.
Musk began escalating his rhetoric on social issues over time, commenting and sharing content regarding the likes of immigration and transgender rights, with his views appearing to align more with right-wing ideals.
He also became increasingly critical of Biden’s administration. SkyNews
