President Trump claimed that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump adviser Elon Musk had “great relations” following explosive reports of clashes at a controversial cabinet meeting on Thursday.
According to the New York Times, the Secretary of State and the tech billionaire were caught up in a fierce debate about cutting the workforce, and Musk told Rubio that “good on TV” is nothing else.
For a while, Rubio, a former Florida senator, has been “furious” with the technology billionaire, leading six prominent companies, especially after the government's Department of Efficiency (DOGE) evacuated the US International Development Agency, an agency that manages multi-billion dollar foreign aid.
During Thursday's meeting, Rubio fought back when he was forced to Musk over a lack of termination at the State Department. Rubio pointed out the 1,500 State Department employees who retired early and asked if they should return just to be fired and counted as another layoff.
Trump praised the country's top diplomats for intervening, defending the Secretary of State, doing a “great job,” running the State Department, taking part in peace talks, and pointing out his busy schedule between many television appearances.
“Elon and Marco have a great relationship. Any other statement is fake news!!! DJT,” Trump wrote in Saturday's post about the true society that denies conflict.
The president also dispelled reports of the clash when pressed by reporters in his oval office on Friday.
“Elon is getting along with Marco. They both do a great job. There's no conflict,” Trump said. He later added, “They're both doing great and good.”
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt also blew away stories of disagreement in previous statements to the hill.
“As President Trump said, this was a great, productive meeting between members of his team, discussing cost-cutting measures and staffing across the federal government. Everyone is working as one team to support President Trump's promise to make our government more efficient,” Levitt said.
Musk and Rubio have not publicly addressed the report.
State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce said that he will make America great again in an age where Rubio “sees the conference as an open and productive discussion with the dynamic teams that are united to achieve the same goal.”
