Karen Lee-Coss talked to Business Insider about what caregiving is like and how it has changed her.
Karen Lee-Coss
After Karen Lee-Coss' father died, her mom moved in with her, her kids, and her husband.
Balancing being a parent and taking care of a parent involves mental gymnastics.
Lee-Coss said caregiving has helped her become more positive and has improved her self-confidence.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Karen Lee-Coss, 53, who lives in North Carolina. The mom of two teenagers takes care of her 78-year-old mom and took care of her dad before he died. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
Caregiving for a parent is a lot like being a parent yourself. Even if you do send your children to day care or someone comes into the home to help, you're still always on 24 hours a day.
I've been a full-time employee at a medical device company for eight years and have been caring for my parents for over 10 years. My mom got sick years ago, and my dad was her caregiver. When he got sick, I became a caregiver for both. When he died, my mother moved in with us.
I'm also a mom of two teenagers and married to a wonderful husband.
My mom became very ill and was hospitalized for a year
My parents lived two and a half hours away from me, so I became my father's reinforcement. I was always in between places, whether on the weekends or taking off time during the week.
My dad was still in really good health at that time. After we were able to transition my mom home, she got well. A couple of years later, she started having mini strokes.
She had a massive stroke in 2019. Caregiving then advanced to another level — having to be her mobility and move her, making sure that everything was taken care of hygiene-wise, preparing for meals, doctor's appointments, and getting her in and out of the car.
My dad did most of the care. We did have an in-home care person come to assist him for a couple of hours, but for the most part, he was the caregiver.
About three years ago, my dad fell ill
I was trying to encourage my parents to move near me so that we could get them into a senior center or care center. My dad wasn't able to make the move due to congestive heart failure. I continued to go back and forth between my home and theirs.
My company transitioned to hybrid work after being completely remote during COVID-19. I was going into the office on Tuesday through Thursday. I spent every other day at my parents' house.
My family probably could see me changing, as I was very tired of the travel and the physical and emotional part of supporting a family two and a half hours away from each other. I couldn't stop because all of them were just as important as the rest.
I did that up until 2023 when my dad died. I then had to become my mother's caregiver, and she moved in with us. We moved to a larger home that has space to support my family.
Karen Lee-Coss takes on many duties to care for her mom.
Karen Lee-Coss
I wear many hats when it comes to taking care of my mom
I do everything from bathing to washing, dressing to speech therapy and physical therapy, outings, doctor's appointments, hair washing, skincare, and pedicures.
I take care of her the way that I would want someone to take care of me. I know the state my mother lived in before she got sick, and I always want to maintain that.
My husband and kids help out. They always make sure that my mom is attended to, such as when it comes to meals, conversation, playing games, and spending time. They do more of a companion type of care.
They also help with transporting her. She's in a wheelchair, and her room is on the top floor. We have a stair lift that we use to bring her down.
Caring for my kids and a parent is mental gymnastics
I have to really search deep because all of the relationships are important to me. When my children want to have a conversation, I have to know how to take the caregiver hat for my mother off and put the mother hat for my children on.
When my son was getting ready to go to college recently, I realized, This is my time to be his mother. He needs me to be present. We talked about his worries, fears, and excitement.
There are some days when I'm super overwhelmed. I try to reassure my family that we can do this together with understanding, conversation, and communication. It's mental gymnastics. I need to know how to be agile and flexible.
Caregiving has made me more positive
It has grown my faith tremendously and also grown my self-confidence. When I look back and see all the things that I've gone through and done them with grace and a smile on my face, it's amazing.
It has also allowed me to stop and smell the flowers because, at my father's death, it resonated with me that tomorrow is not promised. I try to etch out time for my husband, my children, and my mother individually.
Before taking care of my parents, I was a little bit self-centric
I would want to have my me time and quiet time, and go get my nails done and all the things. Now, I sacrifice that sometimes, or I have to juggle it a little bit.
I've learned that it has changed me to be strong but vulnerable. It allows me to be relatable. If I go through this and I act like I've got it all under control and I'm superwoman, then that's not teaching people to sit in their emotions. To me, that's not realistic, that's not sustainable.
I remember being that person who needed a schedule, being predictable, and everything had to be in the know. Now sometimes I have to just go with the flow, and that's OK. That's the biggest thing that I have learned: I'm not in control of everything.
I lived abroad during my 20s, and although I don't regret it, I made some poor financial decisions along the way.
Denae McGaha
When I was 23 years old, I moved from the United States to Budapest to live my dream life.
I lived in Hungary for seven years and enjoyed traveling, but I didn't always consider my finances.
I wish I'd researched more, gotten a travel-friendly credit card, and kept track of small expenses.
Living abroad had always been a dream of mine, so at 23 years old, I moved to Budapest with just a few thousand dollars saved up.
I only intended to stay for 12 months, but that plan changed: I spent seven years living the expat life in Hungary and traveling through Europe.
When I returned to the United States earlier this year, I was absolutely rich in experiences, but financially unstable. Though I don't regret my time abroad, hindsight is 20/20.
There are a few things I wish I'd done differently to better set myself up for success.
I should've taken the time to research and compare programs instead of taking my first offer
My first job in Budapest was teaching English at an elementary school.
Denae McGaha
I was so excited to move to Budapest that I accepted the first job offer that came my way (teaching English at an elementary school) instead of fully researching all my options.
My annual teacher's salary roughly equated to less than $8,000. Since I could dip into my existing savings and only planned to stay for one year, I figured a low salary was the price to pay for adventure.
Now, I know I should've just been patient and spent more time looking for other teaching programs that paid more to begin with.
A travel-rewards card would've been an asset
Though I had credit cards, none of them were especially great for earning travel rewards.
There are so many cards out there that not only allow you to earn cash back when you book flights or hotels, but also get you discounts and other perks. I wish I'd gotten one years ago, so it would've been easier for me to travel on a budget and save on flights.
By the end of my time in Budapest, I'd crisscrossed Europe many times over, and probably could've racked up points that would've at least helped cover my long-haul flights home.
I should've balanced my budget with my travel bucket list
Skiing in the French Alps was one of many highlights from my time abroad.
Denae McGaha
"Will I ever get this chance again?" became one of my refrains throughout my years abroad, and I kept pushing the limits of my budget to make room for more experiences.
So many things seemed too good to pass up, from attending a ball in Vienna to working remotely in Lisbon to skiing in the French Alps.
Though I don't regret any of those experiences — many of them were childhood dreams — I wish I'd balanced my budget by planning low-spend or no-spend periods after big splurges.
When I began earning more, I stopped tracking small expenses and fell victim to 'lifestyle creep'
When the COVID-19 pandemic cut my third year of teaching short, I had to pivot. A local business hired me as a content manager, and from there, I built my portfolio enough to land a remote job with an American marketing agency.
My salary increased significantly, and looking back, this is when my "lifestyle creep" started.
It was the smaller-scale things, like no longer paying attention to what I spent on groceries or tracking how much I went out to eat, that built bad financial habits.
Honestly, as someone who didn't grow up with a lot of money, I was seduced by the feeling that I could buy whatever I wanted whenever I wanted (both because of my higher salary and credit cards). I felt like putting a definite budget in place would've shattered the illusion.
But really, a budget would have saved me from unnecessary debt, and I wish I'd addressed my emotions around spending.
It wasn't until my feature with CNBC — one that required me to go through my finances with a fine-toothed comb — that I confronted how and where I'd been overextending.
Overall, I've realized that it's important to approach finances with curiosity — not fear
Since returning to the US, I've focused on paying off my credit card debt and building my savings.
Denae McGaha
After seven years of living in Budapest, I spent my last bit of savings on a one-way plane ticket home.
I'm glad I spent my 20s abroad, but I've had to put in a lot of work to get my finances to a better place.
These days, I've been focused on rebuilding my savings and paying off the credit-card debt I accumulated by moving home, cutting expenses, and getting a part-time job.
Still, I give myself grace. The truth is, I still would've been intimidated by my finances (and perhaps in a similar position) even if I'd spent the last decade in the US.
I see now that knowledge — about your options, your spending, and your financial tools — is power, and I wish I'd faced this head-on and taken responsibility for my financial literacy sooner.
Hi! Did you catch Jimmy Kimmel last night? The late-night host's show returned after a brief suspension over comments regarding Charlie Kirk. In case you missed it, or you're in a market where local affiliatesare still refusing to air the show, we've got a rundown of all thehighlights.
Kimmel teared up, explaining that he never intended to make light of Kirk's death. And he called political efforts to sway networks and affiliates from airing the show "un-American," noting it wasn't just about comedy.
Late-night hosts, including Kimmel, made one thing very clear, wrote veteran late-night watcher Cheryl Teh: They'll bethorns in Trump's sidefor as long as they can be.
Will Bob Iger leave Disney a Magic Kingdom or a Haunted Mansion?
Despite spending nearly two decades running Disney, what happens over the next few weeks could ultimately define Iger's legacy.
The Jimmy Kimmel saga has put the Disney CEO in the middle of a culture war involving high-profile celebrities, a government agency, and President Donald Trump.
Iger's handling of the continued fallout from Kimmel's suspension-turned-reinstatement could cementhow the legendary executive is remembered, write BI's Lucia Moses, Madeline Berg, and Tim Paradis.
It won't be easy, as Disney has managed to enrage both sides of the aisle. Kimmel supporters are upset he was suspended in the first place, while his detractors are mad he was let back on the air.
And we're not just talking about Disney adults and anonymous internet commentators here. Some players on both sides of the argument hold significant power over the House of Mouse.
Celebrities, who have mostly backed Kimmel, are Disney's lifeblood. If the company were to lose creative community's support, that's a problem. It's tough to create shows and movies if you don't have people willing to make them with you.
That's not to say you want to pick a fight with the other side. The two local TV station owners thatrefuse to air Kimmel's show, Nexstar and Sinclair, oversee roughly 25% of ABC stations. It's the latest in the growing tension betweenDisney and its local broadcasters, writes BI's James Faris.
A 26-year-old man was detained by the Anaheim Police Department for indecent exposure and for being under the influence of a controlled substance.
Image Group LA via Getty Images
It's a marked change from when Iger was looking to take the company a little over a year ago.
Back in April 2024, Iger made clear Disney was about entertaining, not advancing "any kind of agenda." ShakingDisney of the so-called "woke" labelhas been a priority since his return as CEO in 2022.
That process will likely need to be sidelined as Iger navigates the Kimmel situation. Both sides will closely watch the show's future, and each decision will be scrutinized for its underlying political meaning, even if there isn't one.
Because if there is anything we can all agree on, it's getting annoyed over the price of our streaming services going up.
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Gold is having its own gold rush. The precious metal is having its best year since the 1970s, with recent returns ramping up following the Fed's latest rate cut. That success didn't happen overnight, though. BI's Joe Ciolli breaks down thethree main macro driverspropelling gold's hot streak.
How President Trump's $100,000 H-1B affects Wall Street. Silicon Valley isn't the only sector reeling from the new H-1B fee. Many Wall Street banks rely heavily on the program. JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon said he expects pushback on Trump's plan, adding thathe supports "merit-based immigration." BI crunched the data to find out whichfinancial firms could be impacted the most.
The insane schedule of investing personality Jim Cramer. Running on about four hours of sleep, the "Mad Money" hostwakes up every day at 3:15 a.m.to brush up on the market before his workout. He also combs through about 700 emails a day.
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The one thing OpenAI's $100 billion deal with Nvidia can't guarantee. The deal gives OpenAI a significant leg up in the AI race, providing vital access to GPUs. However, it can't guaranteeaccess to electricity, which remains an industry-wide challenge.
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Getty Images; Tyler Le/BI
Spooky season is here, and so is "hybrid creep." Many employers are gradually increasing the number of daysworkers must show up at the office. A new survey, commissioned by Owl Labs, shows 34% of employees must be on-site four days a week, up from 23% in 2023. The subtle trend could signal the end of flexible work at some companies.
Trust is dead. Can the "Chief Trust Officer" revive it? Some companies have added a new position to the C-suite:the chief trust officer. They're tasked with protecting against data breaches, answering questions about their companies' use of AI, and building trust — a challenge since trust is a complex emotion and not a metric.
Tylenol's groundhog day. Tylenol's owner Johnson & Johnson pioneered crisis management with its response to the "Tylenol murders" in 1982, when seven people died from taking Tylenol capsules that someone laced with potassium cyanide. Tylenol is now staring down another PR crisis after President Trump called it unsafe. Communications experts broke down what worked for J&J thenand how it could play out now.
The USS Growler is the only nuclear-missile submarine in the US that's open to the public.
Commissioned in 1958, the USS Growler patrolled seas off the coast of Russia during the Cold War.
The submarine is now an attraction at the Intrepid Museum in New York City.
The USS Growler was once a top-secret US Navy submarine that patrolled the ocean's depths during the Cold War. Armed with nuclear missiles and operated by a crew of 90 men, Growler's firepower acted as a deterrent to keep other nations from using their nuclear weapons in a strategy known as mutually assured destruction.
Today, the USS Growler is on display at the Intrepid Museum in New York City housed on the USS Intrepid, a 900-foot-long World War II-era aircraft carrier. The USS Growler floats alongside it in the Hudson River.
Visitors don't just get to look at the USS Growler; they can actually climb inside and walk through its narrow confines on a self-guided tour.
Submarines remain a crucial component of the US Navy's deterrent strategy. In September 2024, the USS Georgia, a guided-missile submarine, was sent to the Middle East in a show of support for Israel and a show of force to Iran.
Submarines are a costly endeavor. The US Navy's Virginia-class submarine program is projected to run $17 billion over budget through 2030 amid delays, House Rep. Ken Calvert, chairman of the House defense appropriations subcommittee, said in 2024. The Navy has said delays are due to supply-chain issues and "lingering COVID-19 impacts."
While a nuclear-powered submarine, the USS Nautilus, is open to the public in Groton, Connecticut, the Intrepid Museum is the only place in the US where members of the public can go inside a submarine that carried nuclear missiles.
I visited the Intrepid Museum to tour the USS Growler in May 2024. Here's what I saw aboard the only nuclear-missile submarine that's open to the public.
The Intrepid Museum in New York City displays historic vessels used in sea, air, and space exploration as well as military operations.
People buying tickets for the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, located at Pier 86 along the Hudson River in Hell's Kitchen, New York City. The museum is housed on an aircraft carrier and features exhibit halls, flight simulators, artifacts like a cockpit, and a collection of restored aircraft on the flight deck, including the Space Shuttle Enterprise and a Concorde jet, which visitors can enter.
Deb Cohn-Orbach/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Tickets cost $38 per adult and $28 per child over 4 years old and can be purchased on the Intrepid Museum's website. Veterans and military service members receive free admission.
One of the museum's top attractions is a self-guided tour of the USS Growler submarine.
The line to enter the USS Growler.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Every time I've visited the Intrepid Museum, there has been a line to enter the submarine due to the attraction's popularity and small, enclosed spaces.
The line moved quickly when I visited in May 2024 — I only waited for about 15 minutes.
The USS Growler patrolled the seas on top-secret missions off the coast of Russia during the Cold War.
The USS Growler on its launch day.
Naval History and Heritage Command
Commissioned in 1958, the USS Growler carried Regulus II sea-to-surface missiles armed with nuclear warheads. The looming threat of the submarine's firepower acted as a deterrent to prevent other countries from using their nuclear arsenals.
The submarine now floats in the Hudson River with its top deck visible from the dock of the museum.
The USS Growler submarine at the Intrepid Museum.
John Arehart/Shutterstock
Growler was decommissioned in 1964 and awarded to the Intrepid Museum in 1988. The Intrepid Museum spent over $1 million repairing the submarine in 2008 when holes were discovered in its hull during a museum-wide renovation, The New York Times reported.
Exhibits provided a brief history of the USS Growler and the nuclear missiles it carried before entering the submarine.
An exhibit about the USS Growler.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The first Regulus missiles had a range of 500 miles. Regulus II missiles could travel twice that distance.
There was also a sample doorway to make sure guests could walk through the submarine.
A sample doorway size before entering the USS Growler.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
To visit the USS Growler, guests had to be at least 40 inches tall and had to be able to pass through this doorway without assistance.
The first stop inside the submarine was one of the USS Growler's two missile hangars.
The missile hangar.
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Each hangar could hold two Regulus I missiles, which each measured 33 feet long, according to the National Air and Space Museum.
In the navigation compartment, crew members plotted courses and tracked Growler's position.
The navigation compartment.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Growler used a binnacle — a stand that holds a ship's compass — and SINS — the Ship's Inertial Navigation System — to navigate through the seas.
The missile checkout and guidance center was once a top-secret area.
The missile checkout and guidance center.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Crew members assigned to the missile checkout and guidance center were in charge of maintaining, firing, and guiding the trajectory of the Regulus missiles. Launching a Regulus missile took about 15 minutes.
Officers on the USS Growler lived in staterooms that held two to three people.
The officers' stateroom.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Officers acted as leaders and commanders of the crew, overseeing the day-to-day operations of the submarine.
Their staterooms featured folding sinks and desks with chairs that included storage drawers to maximize the tight quarters.
Officers had access to their own shower.
The officers' shower.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Crew members shared a separate washroom.
Officers used the wardroom to eat, socialize, and hold meetings.
The wardroom.
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The wardroom was furnished with laminate walls and vinyl seating booths, popular interior design trends post-World War II.
Officers' meals were cooked in the galley and served from the wardroom pantry.
The pantry.
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The USS Growler carried all of the food and supplies it would need to sustain itself during patrols that lasted over two months.
A storekeeper kept track of non-food supplies such as light bulbs, pens, and toilet paper.
The USS Growler's commanding officer enjoyed the only private room on the entire submarine as its highest-ranked leader.
The commanding officer's stateroom.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The room featured a telephone and a bed that folded up into seating.
The chief petty officers' quarters were nicknamed the "goat locker."
The chief petty officer quarters.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Chief petty officers helped train new submariners and acted as leaders and liaisons between officers and crew members.
The nickname "goat locker" dates back to 1893, when the rank of chief petty officer was established. Chief petty officers were put in charge of the goats that were kept on ships to produce milk, and the animals' pens were located in their quarters, according to the Naval History and Heritage Command.
Yeomen handled clerical and administrative work aboard the USS Growler's tiny office.
An office.
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Yeomen wrote reports, sorted files, and maintained crew members' service records.
A ladder in the bridge trunk led to the bridge of the submarine.
The bridge trunk.
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When the USS Growler traveled on the surface of the water, the bridge provided a vantage point for crew members to surveil the surrounding ocean.
Seeing how far down I was in the submarine was striking. I couldn't imagine what it must have been like to serve on a two-month-long patrol with no fresh air or sunlight.
The control room and attack center contained a dizzying number of buttons, dials, and other instruments.
The control room and attack center.
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Crew members monitored the USS Growler's function with data gathered in the control room and attack center.
Here, the commanding officer would give orders to the crew.
The control and attack center.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The crew members who sat in the chairs directed the USS Growler's movements with three steering wheels that controlled different angles and movements.
The room also featured two periscopes: one for observation and one for attacks.
A periscope.
pio3/Shutterstock
The periscope used for observation featured a wider view, while the attack periscope had higher magnification capabilities.
A call signal station could signal different areas of the submarine such as the wardroom, the office, and the control room.
A call box.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Each room had a corresponding number that crew members could dial.
The sonar room also aided Growler's navigation.
The sonar room.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Sonar stands for sound navigation and ranging. The USS Growler used passive sonar, a system of underwater microphones that listen to the ocean and detect sound waves, to track other vessels and navigate its own positions.
Passive sonar is a more discreet alternative to active sonar, which sends a pulse of energy through the water to detect objects.
Crew members communicated with other ships in the radio room.
The radio room.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The USS Growler could only send messages at periscope depth. Lower down in the ocean, it could receive low-frequency signals, but couldn't send any outgoing messages.
Meals were prepared in the galley.
The kitchen.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
A meal schedule from 1962 listed dishes such as fried chicken, clam chowder, hamburgers, and meatloaf with gravy.
In the scullery, Growler crew members washed dishes and compacted trash.
The scullery.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Trash was disposed of in weighted tubes that wouldn't float to the surface and give away the submarine's location.
The crew's mess was the only common space on the USS Growler.
The crew's mess.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
It functioned as the dining room as well as a place for crew members to play games and watch movies.
Growler's largest sleeping area contained 46 bunks.
The crew's quarters.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The green straps on the beds kept crew members from rolling out of the bunks during rough seas.
The crew's washroom featured two showers.
The crew's washroom.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Showers were a rare luxury for crew members on the USS Growler. A plaque displayed in the room read that some sailors said they never showered once during their two-month patrols.
A distillation system boiled seawater, filtering out the salt to supply fresh water.
Distillers.
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The distilled water was used for cooling the submarine's diesel engines, cooking food, washing dishes, and bathing.
Growler's three diesel engines were located in the engine room.
The engine room.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The engines were soundproofed.
Sailors controlled Growler's speed in the maneuvering room, with officers communicating orders from the control room.
The maneuvering room.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
The USS Growler's maximum speed was 12 knots, or 14 mph, while submerged and 14 knots, or 16 mph, while surfaced.
In addition to carrying nuclear missiles, the USS Growler was also armed with torpedoes.
The aft torpedo room.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
Nine crew members slept in the aft torpedo room, where weapons like the Mark 37 torpedo were kept.
I was relieved to see the sky again as I exited the USS Growler, and in awe of service members who spent months at a time on the vessel.
Leaving the USS Growler.
Talia Lakritz/Business Insider
As the only nuclear-missile submarine in the US that's open to the public, visiting the USS Growler is absolutely worth a trip to the Intrepid Museum.
I was fascinated by how self-sufficient the submarine was as it carried out top-secret patrols. It was hard to believe that 90 crew members operated in such small spaces for extended periods of time.
With its supply of nuclear missiles kept at the ready during the Cold War, the stakes couldn't have been higher to keep the USS Growler running smoothly and efficiently. The stakes remain high today as US Navy submarines continue to patrol waters connected to regional conflicts.
Joe Rogan questioned how President Donald Trump has enough time "to be tweeting" about talk show hosts.
Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images
Joe Rogan isn't a fan of those who gloated about Jimmy Kimmel's suspension.
"You are crazy for supporting this because this will be used on you," Rogan said.
Despite endorsing Donald Trump in 2024, Rogan has at times been critical of the president.
Joe Rogan has had enough of the right celebrating Jimmy Kimmel's suspension.
"I definitely don't think that the government should be involved ever in dictating what a comedian can or cannot say in a monologue," Rogan said during an episode of his influential podcast that was posted on Tuesday.
Rogan's statement mirrored what Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, a Republican and Trump ally, said last week: Conservatives will come to regret setting a precedent where the federal government can bully media companies into censorship.
"The problem is the companies, if they're being pressured by the government, so if that's real and if people on the right are like, 'Yeah, go get 'em.' Oh my God, you are crazy," Rogan said. "You are crazy for supporting this because this will be used on you."
Rogan endorsed Trump on the eve of the 2024 election, welcoming the then-former president on his show despite repeatedly saying he would never do so. While Rogan has emphasized he is "not a Republican," he has often expressed similar views to the GOP base, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rogan's podcast appeared to have been recorded before Disney announced on Monday that Kimmel and his late-night show would return Tuesday evening. Last week, ABC said it was suspending "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" after the host's comments on the killing of Charlie Kirk.
A comedian himself, Rogan said part of Kimmel's final monologue before his suspension was hilarious, even if the "premise" was wrong. During the September 15 show, Kimmel said, "the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them."
"I think what he was trying to do was just set up a joke. He was trying to knock on the MAGA people, but also set up a joke, which was good," Rogan said. 'It was very funny."
Before ABC's suspension, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting Company, which combined own roughly 25% of all local ABC stations, announced that they would not air Kimmel's show on their stations. Both groups have said that they will continue not to air Kimmel's show.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, had pressured local broadcasters to take action after Kimmel's comments angered some conservatives. In his comments, Carr threatened broadcasters' licenses, which the FCC holds jurisdiction over, and which are the lifeblood of local stations. While ABC does not have a license itself, Disney does own a small number of stations in some of the nation's biggest markets.
Trump, who has yet to comment on Kimmel's return, was among those who celebrated ABC's suspension. The president also called for NBC to fire its two late-night hosts.
"Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that's possible. That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC," Trump wrote on Truth Social while on a state visit to the United Kingdom. "Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!! "
Rogan said it was odd that the President of the United States would comment on such news.
"How do you have time while you're running the world to be tweeting that you don't like talk show hosts?" he said. "That is so crazy, crazy."
Now, we're seeing Google use the same playbook, with one twist, which we'll get to in a minute.
But the very big picture is that Google, like Meta in 2024, is attempting to give a win to Jim Jordan, the Republican Congressman who has long been trying to prove that Big Tech platforms are biased against conservatives. But it's trying to do that without admitting that it did much wrong itself.
So, in a letter to Jordan, released on Tuesday, Google spends a lot of time explaining that it has always been committed to free expression, and other ideas that aren't remotely controversial. It also doesn't acknowledge that it made any mistakes when it dealt with controversial claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, or the claims Donald Trump and his supporters made about the 2020 election.
But Google's letter, like Zuckerberg's letter in 2024, does accuse the Biden administration of attempting to influence the way the company dealt with content on its platforms. Biden and his officials "created a political atmosphere that sought to influence the actions of platforms," Google reports. (While we're here, it's worth noting that Zuckerberg's letter was signed by Zuckerberg. The Google letter was signed by Dan Donovan, an attorney at King & Spalding who specializes in congressional investigations.)
If you're jumping into this story without any history or context, Google's statements might seem like a meaningful disclosure — that a giant tech platform says the last president tried to bend it to his will.
How the platforms handled that debate — as well as one about the way to handle claims about the 2020 election results — is still an ongoing discussion.
But that's not what Google is getting into here. It's simply saying that it did its best, and that the Biden administration tried to sway it, and it makes no mention at all of what the Trump administration did.
Meaning that Google very consciously provided Jordan with a letter that would allow him to claim that Google says the Biden administration pushed it around for the last few years, even if that's not really what it says.
Sure enough, that's exactly how Jordan's committee summarizes the Google letter. It notes that Google says "the Biden Administration pressured Google to censor Americans and remove content that did not violate YouTube's policies," and that "The Biden Administration censorship pressure was 'unacceptable and wrong.'"
A Google rep declined to explain how that opportunity would be administered, and whether it applies to everyone who's ever been kicked off — or just people who were booted for violating COVID or election-related rules. (Update: Google now says this is a pilot program that will also be available to "a subset of creators" who've been kicked off YouTube — in addition to ones who were kicked off for violating COVID or election discussion rules.)
But it certainly suggests that high-profile conservatives like Dan Bongino — who was booted off YouTube in 2022, and is now the second-highest ranking official at the FBI — will be allowed back on the world's biggest video platform.
The fact that Google booted a user four years ago, and is likely to reinstate him now, when he's one of the most powerful men in government, is quite a story. It also nicely explains why Google and the other tech platforms are so uncomfortable with any kind of decision-making about the properties they own. Decisions that might have seemed OK in one political climate get reversed in a new one — so why make any calls at all?
Still, the YouTube news is less jarring when you look at the overall context: As the letter notes, YouTube and Google had already been removing restrictions about COVID and election speech in the last few years — before Trump was re-elected.
So this is the kind of concession that Google can offer Jordan, without making much of a concession at all: Your political opponents tried to pressure us, but we resisted. And we're not saying we screwed up by kicking people off — but they can come back, anyway.
And that seems to be the way Big Tech is approaching government in general during Trump 2.0. You give the President and his allies something for public consumption — your presence at the inauguration, or a gold-and-glass bauble, a letter saying his predecessor acted badly — and you get to keep on doing business, more or less as normal.
YouTube admitted to mistakenly removing the wrong videos in its effort to curb COVID-19 misinformation.
Mateusz Slodkowski/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
YouTube is set to reinstate channels previously banned for flouting its COVID-19 policies.
That could mean the return of prominent conservative creators like Dan Bongino and Steve Bannon.
The change comes in the wake of a House Judiciary investigation into Big Tech.
A roster of high-profile conservative voices could soon return to YouTube.
YouTube's parent company, Alphabet, said in a letter published Tuesday that it intends to "provide an opportunity for all creators to rejoin the platform" whose accounts had been terminated over repeated violations of its COVID-19 and election integrity policies.
The letter, written by Alphabet lawyer Daniel Donovan to Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said that YouTube "values conservative voices on its platform" and recognized their reach and role in civic discourse. (Read the letter in full below.)
The House Judiciary Committee published the letter on its website on Tuesday following its monthslong investigation into whether Biden White House officials pressured Big Tech platforms into censoring content. A Google spokesperson confirmed the authenticity of the letter.
YouTube's about-face on previously banned accounts marks the latest shift in Big Tech content moderation. Companies from Meta to X have overhauled their content policies and switched away from using third-party fact-checkers.
Prominent YouTube channels from conservative creators — including Dan Bongino, Steve Bannon, and Children's Health Defense, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nonprofit activist group, as well as those from lesser-known creators — had been banned from YouTube for flouting its COVID-19 misinformation and election-related policies. Bongino has since become the deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, while Kennedy leads the Department of Health and Human Services.
Google's lawyer said in the letter published Tuesday that YouTube had ended all of its stand-alone, COVID-19-related policies by December 2024 and retired a separate policy regarding election integrity in 2023 to "allow for discussion of possible widespread fraud, errors, or glitches occurring in the 2020 and other past U.S. Presidential elections."
The letter didn't go into detail about how previously banned creators could resume their terminated channels or whether their content would be monetized and therefore eligible to get a cut of ad revenue. The Google spokesperson had no further comment but added the company would have more to say in the coming weeks.
"This is another victory in the fight against censorship," Jordan wrote in a post on X.
Google's move to reinstate previously banned channels comes just over a year after Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said — also in a letter to Jordan — that the Biden administration had repeatedly pressured Meta in 2021 to remove content related to COVID-19.
"I believe the government pressure was wrong, and I regret that we were not more outspoken about it," Zuckerberg wrote in the August 2024 letter.
Google, too, said senior Biden administration officials, including White House officials, had pressed the company to remove content related to the COVID-19 pandemic that didn't violate YouTube's policies.
"It is unacceptable and wrong when any government, including the Biden Administration, attempts to dictate how" a company moderates content, Google wrote in the letter published Tuesday.
Google said it has been testing a feature similar to X's Community Notes to allow people to provide relevant context about its videos, but it "has not and will not empower fact-checkers to take action on or label content" on the platform.
Letter from Google counsel to House Judiciary Committee:
President Donald Trump speaks as he is joined by Elon Musk, and his son X Æ A-Xii, in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
(Photo/Alex Brandon)
Elon Musk and Donald Trump have had a tumultuous relationship over the years.
The two traded barbs during Trump's first term but became political allies during the 2024 election.
The pair were spotted chatting at Charlie Kirk's memorial service after a bitter falling out.
Elon Musk and Donald Trump have had something of an on-again-off-again relationship over the years.
The world's richest person and the two-time president of the United States weren't always close, but became singular political allies, with Musk calling himself "first buddy" following Trump's 2024 victory and donating more than $200 million toward pro-Trump super PACs.
At the beginning of Trump's second term, Musk was frequently seen on the president's side and served as the de facto head of theWhite House DOGE office, the cost-cutting initiative that made waves throughout the federal government.
In May, Musk started to separate himself somewhat from Trump, saying he'd devote more time to his businesses and spend less money on politics.
By early June, it appeared that their relationship was blowing up in real time as the two publicly disagreed over the then-pending "Big, Beautiful Bill." Musk's criticism of the bill — and Trump's criticism of his criticism — continued through the end of the month, with the Tesla CEO calling it "utterly insane" as Republicans' self-imposed deadline for passage approached.
Musk even threatened to start his own political party. While Trump threatened to "destroy" Musk's companies.
Tensions have cooled since then. Musk and Trump shook hands at Charlie Cook's memorial service in September, a reunion that Musk and the White House proudly shared on social media.
"For Charlie," Musk wrote on X.
Here's how the two billionaires reached this point.
November 2016: Musk says Trump is 'not the right guy' for the job
"I feel a bit stronger that he is not the right guy. He doesn't seem to have the sort of character that reflects well on the United States," Musk said.
The billionaire added that Hillary Clinton's economic and environmental policies were the "right ones."
December 2016: Musk appointed to Trump's advisory councils
Donald Trump on Tuesday escalated his feud with Elon Musk in a series of Truth Social posts belittling the billionaire.
Evan Vucci/AP Photo
After he won the presidency, Trump appointed Musk to two economic advisory councils, along with other business leaders like Uber CEO Travis Kalanick.
Musk received criticism for working with the controversial president, but he defended his choice by saying he was using the position to lobby for better environmental and immigration policies.
"You have to give him credit," the former president said, referring to Tesla becoming more valuable than Ford and General Motors. "He's also doing the rockets. He likes rockets. And he's doing good at rockets too, by the way."
Trump went on to call Musk "one of our great geniuses" and likened him to Thomas Edison.
May 2020: Trump backs up Musk in feud with California's COVID-19 rules
Elon Musk meets Donald Trump at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. May 30, 2020.
REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
As the pandemic gripped the US in early 2020, Musk clashed with California public-health officials who forced Tesla to temporarily shut down its factory there. Trump voiced his support for Musk.
"California should let Tesla & @elonmusk open the plant, NOW," Trump tweeted in May 2020. "It can be done Fast & Safely!"
Musk called the ban a "morally bad decision" and "foolish to the extreme" in an interview with the Financial Times. Twitter kicked Trump off its platform following the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.
The Tesla billionaire has called himself a "free speech absolutist," and one of his key goals for taking Twitter private was to loosen content moderation.
July 2022: Trump calls Musk a 'bullshit artist'
Former US President Donald Trump speaks during a "Save America" in Anchorage, Alaska on July 9, 2022
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images
In July, Trump took aim at Musk, saying the businessman voted for him but later denied it.
"You know [Musk] said the other day 'Oh, I've never voted for a Republican,'" Trump said during a Saturday rally in Anchorage, Alaska. "I said 'I didn't know that.' He told me he voted for me. So he's another bullshit artist."
On Monday, Musk tweeted that Trump's claim was "not true."
July 2022: Musk says Trump shouldn't run again
Elon Musk co-founded PayPal after his startup X.com merged with Peter Thiel's Confinity.
"I don't hate the man, but it's time for Trump to hang up his hat & sail into the sunset. Dems should also call off the attack – don't make it so that Trump's only way to survive is to regain the Presidency," he tweeted.
He continued: "Do we really want a bull in a china shop situation every single day!? Also, I think the legal maximum age for start of Presidential term should be 69." Trump is 76 years old.
July 2022: Trump lashes out
Former President Donald Trump gives the keynote address at the Faith and Freedom Coalition during their annual conference on June 17, 2022, in Nashville, Tennessee.
Seth Herald/Getty Images
Trump then went on the offensive, posting a lengthy attack on Musk on Truth Social, the social media company he founded.
"When Elon Musk came to the White House asking me for help on all of his many subsidized projects, whether it's electric cars that don't drive long enough, driverless cars that crash, or rocketships to nowhere, without which subsidies he'd be worthless, and telling me how he was a big Trump fan and Republican, I could have said, 'drop to your knees and beg,' and he would have done it," Trump said in a post that criticized two of Musk's ventures, Tesla and the rocket company SpaceX.
October 2022: Trump cheers Musk's Twitter deal but says he won't return
Following Musk's official buyout of Twitter on Thursday, Trump posted to Truth Social, cheering the deal.
"I am very happy that Twitter is now in sane hands, and will no longer be run by Radical Left Lunatics and Maniacs that truly hate our country," he said. He added that he likes Truth Social better than other platforms, echoing comments from earlier this year in which he ruled out a return to Twitter.
On Monday, Musk joked about the potential of welcoming the former president back to his newly acquired platform.
"If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me if Trump is coming back on this platform, Twitter would be minting money!," the Tesla CEO tweeted.
May 2023: Musk hosts Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' glitchy debut
Musk and other right-leaning voices in Silicon Valley initially supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. DeSantis ended 2022 as Trump's best-positioned primary challenger. In November 2022, as DeSantis was skyrocketing to acclaim, Musk said he would endorse him. In March 2023, after enduring Trump's attacks for months, DeSantis prepared to make history by formally announcing his campaign in an interview on Twitter.
The initial few minutes were a glitchy disaster. Trump and his allies ruthlessly mocked DeSantis' "Space" with Musk and venture capitalist David Sachs. DeSantis' interview later proceeded, but his campaign was dogged for days with negative headlines.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk looks into his phone as his livestreams a visit to the US-Mexico border in Eagle Pass, Texas.
John Moore/Getty Images
September 2023: A Trump-style border wall is needed, Musk says
Musk live-streamed a visit to the US-Mexico border on Twitter, which he had rebranded as "X." Musk said that one of Trump's signature policies was necessary during his visit to Eagle Pass, Texas, to get a first-person look at what local officials called a crisis at the border.
"We actually do need a wall and we need to require people to have some shred of evidence to claim asylum to enter, as everyone is doing that," Musk wrote on X. "It's a hack that you can literally Google to know exactly what to say! Will find out more when I visit Eagle Pass maybe as soon as tomorrow."
Like Trump and others on the right, Musk had criticized the broader consensus in Washington for focusing too much on Russia's unprovoked war against Ukraine in comparison to domestic issues like migration.
March 2024: Trump tries to woo Musk, but the billionaire says he won't give him money.
Trump tried to woo Musk during a meeting at the former president's Mar-a-Lago resort. According to The New York Times, Trump met with Musk and a few other GOP megadonors when the former president's campaign was particularly cash-strapped. After the Times published its report, Musk said he would not be "donating money to either candidate for US President."
It wasn't clear who Musk meant in terms of the second candidate. He had repeatedly criticized President Joe Biden, who looked poised to be headed toward a rematch with Trump.
July 2024: Musk endorses Trump after the former president is shot
Musk said he "fully endorsed" Trump after the former president was shot during a political rally ahead of the Republican National Convention. The billionaire's endorsement marked a major turning point in his yearslong political evolution from an Obama voter. Days later, it would come to light that Musk pressed Trump to select Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his running mate.
Trump announced Vance as his vice presidential pick at the Republican National Convention.
The ticket, Musk wrote on X, "resounds with victory."
It wasn't just his public support that Musk was offering. In July, The Wall Street Journal reported Musk had pledged roughly $45 million to support a pro-Trump super PAC. Musk later said he would donate far less, but his rebranding into a loyal member of the MAGA right was complete.
August 2024: Trump joins Musk for a highly anticipated interview
Trump, who ended the Republican National Convention primed for victory, stumbled after Biden abruptly dropped out of the 2024 race. The former president and his allies have struggled to attack Vice President Kamala Harris, now the Democratic presidential nominee.
Amid Harris' early media blitz, Trump joined Musk on a two-hour livestream on X that garnered an audience of over 1 million listeners. The conversation covered topics ranging from a retelling of Trump's assassination attempt to illegal immigration to Musk's potential role with a government efficiency commission.
In August, Trump began floating the idea that he "certainly would" consider adding Musk to his Cabinet or an advisory role. The Tesla CEO responded by tweeting an AI-generated photo of himself on a podium emblazoned with the acronym "D.O.G.E"—Department of Government Efficiency.
"I am willing to serve," he wrote above the image.
September 2024: Musk says he's ready to serve if Trump gives him an advisory role
In September, Trump softened the suggestion of Musk joining his Cabinet due to his time constraints with running his various business ventures, the Washington Post reported. However, he also said that Musk could "consult with the country" and help give "some very good ideas."
"I can't wait. There is a lot of waste and needless regulation in government that needs to go," he wrote.
He later said on X that he "looked forward to serving" the country and would be willing to do with without any pay, title, or recognition.
October 2024: Musk speaks at Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania
Elon Musk spoke at Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Musk joined Trump onstage during the former president's rally, hosted on October 5 in the same location where Trump survived an assassination attempt in July. Musk sported an all-black "Make America Great Again" cap and briefly addressed the crowd, saying that voter turnout for Trump this year was essential or "this will be the last election."
"President Trump must win to preserve the Constitution," Musk said. "He must win to preserve democracy in America."
The next day, Musk's America PAC announced that it would offer $47 to each person who refers registered voters residing in swing states to sign a petition "in support for the First and Second Amendments."
By October, the PAC had reportedly already spent over $80 million on the election, with over $8.2 million spread across 18 competitive House races for the GOP.
The Tesla CEO later told former Fox News host Tucker Carlson that he might face "vengeance" if Trump loses the election.
November 2024: Trump wins the presidency and names Musk his administration
President-elect Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have been nearly inseparable since the election, going to social and political events together.
Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Musk was by Trump's side on election night at Mar-a-Lago, helping celebrate his victory.
Nearly a week after his 2024 presidential election win, Trump announced that Musk and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy were chosen to lead a newly minted Department of Government Efficiency (or DOGE, as Musk likes to call it, in reference to the meme-inspired cryptocurrency Dogecoin).
"Together, these two wonderful Americans will pay the way for my Administration to dismantle the Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies," Trump said in a statement.
It's unclear whether the department will formally exist within the government, though Trump said the office would "provide advice and guidance from outside of Government" and work directly with the White House and Office of Management & Budget.
Musk responded in a post on X that the Department of Government Efficiency will be post all their actions online "for maximum transparency."
"Anytime the public thinks we are cutting something important or not cutting something wasteful, just let us know!" Musk wrote. "We will also have a leaderboard for most insanely dumb spending of your dollars. This will be both extremely tragic and extremely entertaining."
Outside of administrative duties, Musk has also attended "almost every meeting and many meals that Mr. Trump has had," the New York Times reported, acting as a partial advisor and confidant. The Tesla CEO also reportedly joined Trump's calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan while both men were at the president-elect's Mar-a-Lago club, where Musk seems to have settled in.
"Elon won't go home," Trump told NBC News jokingly. "I can't get rid of him."
The two's close relationship has extended to a more personal friendship. Musk was seen attending Trump's Thanksgiving dinner and on the golf course with Trump and his grandchildren, where Kai Trump said he achieved "uncle status."
December 2024: Trump reaffirms he will be the next President, not Musk
While Musk and Trump are both big personalities, the President-elect made it clear that he'll be the one running the country. President-elect Donald Trump dismissed the notion that he "ceded the presidency" to Musk and said that even if the billionaire wanted to be president, he couldn't because he was born in South Africa.
"No, he's not going to be president, that I can tell you," Trump said at Turning Point USA's annual "AmericaFest" in December. "And I'm safe. You know why? He can't be? He wasn't born in this country."
Trump's comments came after Musk flexed his influence to help shut down a bipartisan emergency spending bill earlier that month. Some Republicans questioned why Trump hadn't been more active in derailing the bill, and Democrats baited the President-elect on social media with posts about Musk "calling the shots" and taking on the role of a "shadow president.
Prior to Trump addressing the subject, Trump's team also looked to shut down the idea that Musk is leading the Republican Party.
"As soon as President Trump released his official stance on the CR, Republicans on Capitol Hill echoed his point of view," Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition, told BI. "President Trump is the leader of the Republican Party. Full stop."
January 2025: Musk and fellow billionaires celebrate Trump's inauguration
Elon Musk spoke onstage during an inauguration event at Capital One Arena.
Christopher Furlong/Getty Images
Trump was sworn into office on January 20. Several tech leaders were in attendance, including Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon's Jeff Bezos, and Google's Sundar Pichai. The "first buddy" was also front and center for Trump's inauguration.
Musk took the stage to celebrate at an inauguration event at the Capital One Arena, where he sparked accusations over a gesture he made that some said resembled a Nazi salute. Musk denied the allegations.
"Hopefully, people realize I'm not a Nazi. Just to be clear, I'm not a Nazi," he said during an interview with Joe Rogan.
February 2025: The White House says Musk isn't running DOGE
Elon Musk is undoubtedly the face of DOGE. It remains clear who exactly is running it.
Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images
Though Musk has been the face of the DOGE effort, White House court filings said he has "no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself."
In the filing, Musk is described as a senior advisor to Trump with "no greater authority than other senior White House advisors." Officials have also called him a "special government employee."
Trump told reporters they can call Musk "whatever you want."
"Elon is to me a patriot," Trump said in February. "You could call him an employee, you could call him a consultant, you could call him whatever you want."
Later that month, a White House official told BI that Amy Gleason, who previously worked for US Digital Service, is the acting DOGE administrator.
March 2025: Trump buys a Tesla and calls out protesters
Trump and Musk sit inside a red Tesla Model S in front of the White House.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Despite court filings and White House officials stating otherwise, Trump told Congress that Musk is the leader of the DOGE office.
"I have created the brand-new Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, perhaps you've heard of it, which is headed by Elon Musk, who is in the gallery tonight," Trump said during his speech on March 4.
Those questioning the constitutionality of DOGE were quick to respond by letting a federal judge know about their claims that Musk is in charge.
Meanwhile, calls for a Tesla boycott are growing as Musk becomes more involved in Trump's presidency. Protests, boycotts, and vandalism at Tesla dealerships across the US have spread since the beginning of 2025.
Trump stepped in to defend Musk's electric car company on Tuesday, with Teslas on the South Lawn of the White House. In a post on Truth Social, he wrote that he'd purchase a car to show support amid the public outcry.
"The Radical Left Lunatics, as they often do, are trying to illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World's great automakers, and Elon's 'baby,' in order to attack and do harm to Elon, and everything he stands for," the president wrote.
April 2025: Musk announces he's stepping back from DOGE
Elon Musk said DOGE isn't going anywhere and may run through the end of Trump's term in 2028.
Samuel Corum via Getty Images
Three months into DOGE's mission to reshape the federal workforce, Musk announced that he would be stepping back from the effort. He broke the news during an underwhelming Tesla earnings call, where earnings per share were down 71% year over year.
"Starting next month, I will be allocating far more of my time to Tesla," Musk said during the call. He added that "the major work of establishing the Department of Government Efficiency" had been completed.
At the time, Musk said he would keep spending one or two days each week on governmental duties, so long as Trump wanted him to do so.
May 2025: Musk says he'll be spending less on politics, criticizes the Republican agenda, and announces he's leaving government for good
Elon Musk gave a video interview at the Qatar Economic Forum on Tuesday.
Bloomberg
By May, Musk started to step back from his political activity overall. During an interview at the Qatar Economic Forum, he said he thinks he's "done enough" in terms of political contributions.
"In terms of political spending, I'm going to do a lot less in the future," he said, adding that he didn't "currently see a reason" to pour money into politics. Previously, Musk had said his super PAC would contribute to 2026 midterm efforts.
A few days later, Musk told a reporter that he "probably did spend a bit too much time on politics," and that he'd "reduced that significantly in recent weeks."
Musk took a decidedly more critical tone regarding the overall Republican agenda. In an interview with CBS in late May, he said he wasn't pleased with Trump and House Republicans' "big beautiful" spending bill.
"I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing," Musk said.
And then, on May 28, Musk cut ties with DOGE and the Trump administration. The White House confirmed that it had started Musk's off-boarding process.
"As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending," Musk wrote in a post on X. "The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government."
Under federal law, special government employees can't serve for more than 130 days a year. Musk left the administration 128 days after the inauguration.
June 2025: Musk and Trump escalate attacks, after Tesla CEO delivers sharp rebuke against the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Musk spoke out against Trump's spending bill.
ALLISON ROBBERT/AFP via Getty Images
Days after stepping away from his job in the White House, Musk delivered his harshest criticism yet of the GOP spending proposal called the "Big Beautiful Bill."
"I'm sorry, but I just can't stand it anymore," Musk wrote on X on June 3. "This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it."
Some congressional Republicans, including Sens. Rand Paul and Mike Lee, posted that they agreed with Musk. Meanwhile, Trump has consistently defended the bill on Truth Social, including just hours before Musk's critical post on X.
In an interview with CBS News that aired June 1, Musk said, "I'm a little stuck in a bind where I'm like, well, I don't want to speak up against the administration, but I also don't want to take responsibility for everything the administration's doing."
Musk began to dig up old tweets from Trump, including one where the president said in 2013, "I cannot believe the Republicans are extending the debt ceiling—I am a Republican & I am embarrassed!"
Musk quote-tweeted it with the message, "Wise words," taking a dig at Trump's very different stance on the debt ceiling today.
Trump first shot back with a softer/more diplomatic response, saying that the CEO and he "had a great relationship," but he wasn't sure if it would continue.
Musk shot back within minutes on X, saying that while he thought the EV phase-out was unfair, what he really took issue with was the "MOUNTAIN of DISGUSTING PORK in the bill."
The tone soon took a sharp turn after the president threatened on the same day to terminate the federal contracts that Musk's companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, rely on, and Musk began to take credit for Trump's 2024 electoral victory.
In response to Trump's threat to cancel the government contracts, Musk said on X that he'd immediately decommission SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which provides NASA transport to and from the International Space Station.
"The latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country! Utterly insane and destructive," Musk said on X on June 28. "It gives handouts to industries of the past while severely damaging industries of the future."
He continued to bash the bill on X, focusing in particular on how it would end Biden-era tax credits for renewable energy and saying that the bill would probably decrease America's energy capacity. It would be, he said in a post on June 28, "incredibly destructive."
Trump responded that same weekend, though in somewhat muted tones. He called Musk a "wonderful guy" in an interview with Fox News, adding that the two haven't spoken much.
"He's a smart guy. And he actually went and campaigned with me and this and that," Trump said. "But he got a little bit upset, and that wasn't appropriate."
Musk on June 30 doubled down on his calls for another political party, saying on X, "If this insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day."
"Every member of Congress who campaigned on reducing government spending and then immediately voted for the biggest debt increase in history should hang their head in shame," Musk wrote on X. "And they will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth."
July 2025: Trump threatens Musk but later says he wants his companies to do well
Trump discusses Elon Musk outside the White House.
Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images
Trump responded on July 1 on Truth Social, suggesting DOGE be turned on its former chief.
"Elon may get more subsidy than any human being in history, by far, and without subsidies, Elon would probably have to close up shop and head back home to South Africa. No more Rocket launches, Satellites, or Electric Car Production, and our Country would save a FORTUNE," he wrote.
Musk followed up with more posts on X proclaiming his opposition to the spending bill.
"What's the point of a debt ceiling if we keep raising it?" he wrote in one post.
Trump signed his signature bill on July 4. The same day, Musk said his potential America Party could "laser-focus" on a few key House and Senate races. Given thin congressional margins, he said, those lawmakers could serve as the "deciding vote" on controversial laws.
On July 5, Musk said on X that he had formed the America Party to "give you back your freedom." Musk said on Sunday that the America Party might consider backing a presidential candidate, but would focus on Congress for the next year.
Trump responded on Truth Social on Sunday, saying he was "saddened" to see Musk go "completely 'off the rails,' essentially becoming a "TRAIN WRECK over the past five weeks." The president added that third political parties have never succeeded.
Late in the month, Trump said that even though his signature domestic plan slashes EV subsidies, he's not out to hurt Musk's bottom line.
"Everyone is stating that I will destroy Elon's companies by taking away some, if not all, of the large-scale subsidies he receives from the U.S. Government," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "This is not so! I want Elon, and all businesses within our Country, to THRIVE, in fact, THRIVE like never before!"
Trump's statement came a day after the White House appeared to suggest that federal agencies shouldn't contract with Musk's xAI.
September 2025: Trump and Musk reunite to remember a conservative icon
Trump and Musk reunited at Charlie Kirk's memorial service that was held at the Arizona Cardinal's stadium in Arizona.
Ross D. Franklin/AP
Trump and Musk were seen for the first time since their public falling out at the memorial service for conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and a host of other top White House officials joined together in Arizona to pay tribute to Kirk, who was killed while speaking at Utah Valley University.
Musk and the White House later posted photos of the meet-up on X.
"He was killed because his words made a difference," Musk said when asked about Kirk's killing. "Because he was showing people light. And he was killed by the dark."
Trump said that Musk came over "to say hello."
"I thought it was nice, he came over, we had a little conversation," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One after the memorial service. "We had a very good relationship but it was nice that he came over. "
