President Donald Trump addressed the declining impact of mainstream media smears during his highly anticipated side-by-side interview with Elon Musk, hosted by Sean Hannity on Fox News Tuesday night. During the discussion, Hannity asked Trump about a frequent attack used by Democratic lawmakers and media outlets, many of whom have repeatedly referred to Musk as “President Musk.”
Both Trump and Musk dismissed the characterization, calling it a weak attempt to drive a wedge between them and derail Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative. “I used to think they were good at it. They’re actually bad at it. Because if they were good at it, I’d never be president because I think nobody in history has ever got more bad publicity than me. I could do the greatest things. I get 98% bad publicity,” Trump said in reference to the mainstream media.
Musk then reiterated that he “loves” Trump, adding that the working relationship between the two has grown exponentially since the president was inaugurated last month. “I think President Trump is a good man and he’s, ya know…. because the president has been so unfairly attacked in the media, it’s really outrageous,” the Space X founder added. “And at this point, I spent a lot of time with the president and not once have I seen him do something that was mean or cruel or wrong. Not once.”
Musk—who formally endorsed President Trump’s re-election campaign following the July 13 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania—revealed that he had planned to endorse Trump regardless. “I didn’t know that,” Trump responded, prompting Musk to clarify that the attempt on Trump’s life simply “sped things up.”
Trump similarly praised Musk while describing him as a “good businessman” who has always had his respect. “He did Starlink, he did things that were so advanced and nobody knew what the hell they were. I can tell you in North Carolina they had no communication, they were wiped out,” the president said in reference to Hurricane Helene recovery efforts in North Carolina and Tennessee.
The president commended Musk for his work with SpaceX and the revival of America’s space program. “He said you know you can’t we have a rocket program if you’re gonna dump a billion dollars into the ocean every time you fly you have to save it. And he saved it, the first time that I’ve ever seen that done,” Trump said. “Now, nobody else can do it. If you look at the US, Russia, or China, they can’t do it. And they won’t be able to do it for a long time. He has the technology. So you learn, I wanted somebody really smart to work with me in terms of the country, a very important aspect.”