Elon Musk Avoids Trump Questions and Focuses on Space Travel in Tense Interview

In a recent interview with CBS’ Sunday Morning, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk steered the conversation away from politics and firmly kept it focused on his passion for space travel. The interview, which was pre-taped while Musk was still engaged in his role as a special government employee, quickly became tense when reporter David Pogue broached the subject of former president Donald Trump’s policies.

As Pogue questioned Musk about his views on Trump’s tariffs and the administration’s handling of international students, the billionaire entrepreneur was quick to cut off the discussion, saying, “I think we want to stick to the subject of the day, which is, like, spaceships, as opposed to, you know, presidential policy.”

When Pogue responded, “I was told anything’s good,” Musk bluntly replied, “No… well, no.” His refusal to delve deeper into the political realm raised eyebrows, particularly as it came amidst his involvement with the Trump administration. While Musk has been closely associated with Trump, working in the capacity of special government employee, his public stance on government spending and the controversial cuts in the federal agencies revealed a different side to his relationship with the former president.

During the interview, Musk expressed frustration with being blamed for the controversial cuts made to federal agencies under his leadership. He referred to the cuts as “unfair” and remarked that he had become “the whipping boy for everything.” Musk defended his stance on government expenditure, stating, “I’m a proponent of smaller government, not bigger government.” However, he acknowledged that his decisions to cut programs might have made him an easy target for those who favor more government intervention.

As the interview progressed, Musk made it clear that his focus was shifting toward the future of SpaceX and his other ventures, such as Neuralink and Tesla. He acknowledged that his companies were geared toward shaping “the probable trajectory of civilization” but emphasized his need to pull back from government work. Musk revealed that he would be scaling down his involvement in government affairs, working just “a day or two” each week.

This interview, conducted before SpaceX’s highly anticipated Starship test flight, showcased Musk’s relentless drive to focus on his passion for space exploration. Though he was visibly uncomfortable discussing his government role, Musk’s enthusiasm for his companies and their long-term impact was evident as he highlighted the “amazing” results of SpaceX’s work.

While the conversation turned away from Trump and his administration’s policies, the fallout from Musk’s comments would not be contained. Following the interview, Musk’s remarks on the Trump-backed budget bill sparked further controversy. The news cycle continued to evolve as Musk distanced himself from the administration’s policies, but his focus remains firmly on his ambitious projects in space and technology.