<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail-" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/us/politics/musk-navarro-tariffs-fight.html" class="gmail-">https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/us/politics/musk-navarro-tariffs-fight.html</a></div><div class="gmail-" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px"><br class="gmail-"></div><div class="gmail-" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px"><br class="gmail-"></div><div class="gmail-" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px"><h1 class="e1h9rw200 gmail-css-1j1icla" style="margin:0px auto;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-cheltenham,cheltenham-fallback-georgia,cheltenham-fallback-noto,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:2.5rem;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:2.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:600px">Musk Disparages Trump’s Trade Adviser as Tariffs Upend the Economy</h1><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0.5rem auto;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-cheltenham,cheltenham-fallback-georgia,cheltenham-fallback-noto,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.4375rem;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:600px">The feud between two of President Trump’s top advisers is playing out as the administration’s new tariffs have caused huge losses across global financial markets.</div></div><div class="gmail-" style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Helvetica;font-size:12px"><div class="gmail-css-7hsod0" style="margin:3.75rem 0px 1.75rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:UICTFontTextStyleBody;font-size:16px;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:rgb(51,51,51)"><div class="gmail-css-12em5ns" style="margin:1.25em auto 0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:600px"><div class="gmail-byline-container epjyd6m2 gmail-css-1u5onbp" style="margin:0px 0px 0.75rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:flex;width:600px"><div class="epjyd6m1 gmail-css-233int" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:inline-block"><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:0.9375rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-weight:700;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.25rem;vertical-align:baseline;display:inline-block"><span class="gmail-byline-prefix" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline">By </span><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/tyler-pager" class="gmail-css-ojhyzr e1jsehar0 gmail-last-byline" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;color:inherit;text-decoration-line:underline;display:inline-block">Tyler Pager</a></div><div class="epjyd6m0 gmail-css-gqryk5" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"><div id="enhanced-byline" class="gmail-css-8atqhb" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:174.375px"><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:0.9375rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.25rem;vertical-align:baseline">Reporting from Washington</div></div></div></div></div><ul class="epjyd6m4 gmail-css-1cgskve" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none;display:flex"><li class="gmail-css-ccw2r3 epjyd6m3" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 1rem 0px 0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;list-style:none"><span class="e16638kd3 gmail-css-1sbuyqj" style="margin:0px;padding:0px 1em 0px 0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:inline-block">April 8, 2025</span><span class="e16638kd4 gmail-css-233int" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:inline-block">Updated <span class="gmail-css-epvm6" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:nowrap">4:45 p.m. ET</span></span></li></ul></div><div class="gmail-css-j3uhc5" style="margin:0px auto;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:600px"></div></div><div class="gmail-css-s99gbd gmail-StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="margin:0px auto 1rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:flex;height:555px;width:1170px"><div class="gmail-css-53u6y8" style="margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px"><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Elon Musk slammed President Trump’s top trade adviser as “dumber than a sack of bricks” on Tuesday, exposing a remarkable rift in the president’s inner circle over the wide-ranging tariffs that have upended the global economy.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">The feud between Mr. Musk and Peter Navarro, who has been the architect of many of Mr. Trump’s trade plans, has been simmering for days as the administration’s new tariffs have caused huge losses across global financial markets.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">So far, Mr. Trump has not weighed in on the clash between his top aides, both of whom he claims to hold in high regard. But Mr. Musk’s words — though aimed at Mr. Navarro — were a rare criticism of Mr. Trump’s policies from one of his most influential advisers.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Mr. Musk, the world’s richest man, is estimated to have lost roughly $31 billion since Mr. Trump announced sweeping tariffs on foreign countries on April 2, according to the <a class="gmail-css-yywogo" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/" title="" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:underline;text-decoration-style:solid">Bloomberg Billionaires Index</a>.</div></div></div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div><div class="gmail-css-s99gbd gmail-StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="margin:0px auto 1rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:flex;height:555px;width:1170px"><div class="gmail-css-53u6y8" style="margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px"><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">The squabble escalated on Monday when Mr. Navarro said on CNBC that Mr. Musk was not a “car manufacturer” but a “car assembler” because Tesla, Mr. Musk’s electric vehicle company, relied on parts from around the world.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Mr. Musk fired back on Tuesday, calling Mr. Navarro a “moron” and “dumber than a sack of bricks” in a post on X, the social media site he owns. Later in the day, Mr. Musk doubled down, posting that he wanted to “apologize to bricks.”</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">“That was so unfair to bricks,” Mr. Musk wrote. He also used a slur to refer to Mr. Navarro, calling him “Peter Retarrdo.”</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, tried to downplay the feud.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">“Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue,” she told reporters.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Mr. Navarro ignored questions from reporters at the White House on Tuesday afternoon about Mr. Musk’s posts on social media.</div></div></div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline"></div><div class="gmail-css-s99gbd gmail-StoryBodyCompanionColumn" style="margin:0px auto 1rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;display:flex;height:900px;width:1170px"><div class="gmail-css-53u6y8" style="margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px"><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Mr. Trump has long allowed, and at times fostered, conflict between his top advisers, but it is unusual for animus between aides to play out so publicly. Mr. Navarro was a senior official on trade issues during Mr. Trump’s first term and stayed loyal to the president afterward, even <a class="gmail-css-yywogo" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/17/us/politics/peter-navarro-prison-convention.html" title="" style="margin:0px;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:inherit;vertical-align:baseline;text-decoration-line:underline;text-decoration-style:solid">spending four months in jail</a> after being convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to testify in its investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1.25rem;font-style:inherit;font-variant-caps:inherit;font-stretch:inherit;line-height:1.875rem;vertical-align:baseline;width:600px;max-width:100%">Mr. Musk, a key member of the president’s inner circle who spent hundreds of millions of dollars to support his presidential campaign, is usually a staunch supporter of Mr. Trump’s policies. But the tariffs have been an exception.</div><div class="gmail-" style="margin:0px 0px 0.9375rem;padding:0px;border:0px;font-family:nyt-imperial,georgia,"times new roman",times,serif;font-size:1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