Elon Musk's brother bashes Trump tariffs as tax on consumers

What they're saying: "Who would have thought that Trump was actually the most high tax American President in generations," Kimbal Musk posted on X. "Through his tariff strategy, Trump has implemented a structural, permanent tax on the American consumer."

• An entrepreneur and chef, Kimbal Musk sits on Tesla's board.

Zoom out: It wasn't just the broad attack on the idea of tariffs — he also took aim at Trump's strategy of using them to encourage manufacturers to re-shore in the U.S.

• "Even if he is successful in bringing jobs on shore through the tariff tax, prices will remain high and the tax on consumption will remain [in] the form of higher prices because we are simply not as good at making all things," he wrote.

Zoom in: Kimbal Musk's criticism of the president follows a weekend blowup between his big brother Elon and Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro over the wisdom of tariffs.

• Elon Musk posted to X that Navarro's Harvard Ph.D. suggested he had more ego than brains, and that he "ain't built s--t."

• Musk later told an Italian political gathering he'd sooner a world with more free trade, not less.
• Navarro said Sunday in a TV interview that Elon Musk "doesn't understand" how some trade issues work.

What to watch: Whether Elon Musk's government clock ticks faster.

• Trump said last week that Musk was likely to leave DOGE "in a few months" and return to a more active role with his companies.
• The president didn't give a specific timeline, but Musk himself has suggested his work could be done sooner than later.