Axios PM

June 05, 2025
Good Thursday afternoon. Today's newsletter, edited by Sam Baker, is 424 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for copy editing.
1 big thing: The breakup
President Trump and Elon Musk are in the middle of a very nasty, very public breakup.
- β±οΈ Today's drama started in the Oval Office, where Trump met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
- "I'm very disappointed in Elon," Trump told reporters in his first public comments about Musk's social media tirade against his "big, beautiful bill."
- "Whatever," Musk quickly replied on X.
π₯ Things went off the rails from there.

- Trump said on Truth Social that Musk "just went CRAZY" over electric vehicle tax credits, and he threatened to cancel Musk's federal contracts.
- Musk has tweeted about Trump or the bill more than 40 times today. "Without me, Trump would have lost the election," he wrote, slamming Trump's "ingratitude." He also agreed with a user who said Trump should be impeached and removed from office.

The big picture: These are two of the most powerful men in the world.
- Any disruption between the federal government and SpaceX β whether it's Trump following through on threats to cancel contracts or Musk following through on threats to yank important technology β could have real implications.
- Republicans would certainly feel the sting if Musk stopped shoveling millions of dollars into their campaigns.
- Even if none of that happens, this explosive divorce is a messy, distracting spectacle β less than six months into Trump's second term.
2. π Tesla stock dives


Musk's feud with Trump sent Tesla shares plunging this afternoon.
- The company's stock ended the day down 14%.
3. Catch me up


- π¦ American imports plummeted by about 16% in April β the largest one-month drop ever recorded. Go deeper.
- πΊπ¦ President Trump compared Russia and Ukraine to "children fighting in the park" and suggested it might be best to let them keep fighting for a while. Go deeper.
- βοΈ Trump gave Senate Republicans a green light to look for Medicare savings β a potential political minefield. Go deeper.
4. π Hoops history

Either the Oklahoma City Thunder or the Indiana Pacers will soon take home the first NBA championship in their franchise's history.
- The NBA Finals tip off tonight at 8:30 p.m. ET, on ABC.
β‘οΈ The Thunder are the odds-on favorite to win it all. They had the best record in the NBA this season (68-14), they have this year's MVP (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander) and they're one of the deepest teams in the league.
- They're also the youngest, with an average age of just over 24 years.
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