President Donald Trump said on Friday that war plans should not be shared with his adviser Elon Musk due to his extensive business interests in China. The statement marks a rare instance where Trump acknowledged potential limits to Musk’s influential role in his administration.
“Elon has businesses in China,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting on a new fighter jet project. “And he would be susceptible, perhaps, to that.”
Concerns over business ties
Elon Musk, who leads Tesla and SpaceX, has played a central role in Trump’s government efficiency initiatives through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). However, Tesla’s deep financial ties to China—where it has a major production plant and sales market—have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest.
Trump, who has previously dismissed such concerns, praised Musk as a patriot but acknowledged the sensitivities surrounding his corporate responsibilities.
Musk visits Pentagon, discusses cost cuts
Despite the restrictions on classified military briefings, Musk visited the Pentagon on Friday to discuss reducing costs in defense programs.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the visit, stating, “Musk was here to talk about efficiencies, to talk about innovations.”
Musk, leaving the Pentagon, told reporters, “I’m ready to do anything that could be helpful,” but declined to answer whether he had received classified information on China.
Backlash over Musk’s Government role
Musk has been instrumental in the Trump administration’s aggressive push to downsize government operations. However, his cost-cutting strategies—often involving mass layoffs and program eliminations—have drawn sharp criticism from lawmakers and federal employees.
Trump calls report “fake news”
After a report by The New York Times said that billionaire Elon Musk will be briefed by the US Department of Defense on the country’s military strategy for a potential war with China, and that the Pentagon planned to present Musk with 20-30 slides detailing how the US would respond in such a conflict, , President Donald Trump refuted the report in a post on Truth Social on March 21, calling it “fake news.”
