AMNA NAWAZ: Welcome to the "News Hour."

We begin tonight with the fallout from# the extraordinary public feud betwee.. President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon# Musk that followed their public rift over## Mr. Trump's massive tax and spending bill.# The president this morning reportedly said## he thought Musk had lost his mind and that# he won't be speaking with Musk for a while.

GEOFF BENNETT: For his part, Elon Musk sparred# publicly throughout the day with former Trump## adviser Steve Bannon on social media, calling him# a criminal.

That came after Bannon suggested that## Trump should have the government seize control of# SpaceX and investigate Musk's immigration status.

Musk, who was born in South Africa, has# been a naturalized U.S. citizen since 2002.

For more, we're joined now by Tyler Pager, White# House correspondent for The New York Times.

Tyler, thank you for being with us.

So you and your colleagues have# new reporting on wha.. this Trump-Musk rupture.

What set it off?

TYLER PAGER, White House Correspondent, The New# York Times: Yes, thanks so much for having me.

And I think it's important to note# that this relationship has been## eroding over time.

There's been several# points over the last few months where## Trump and Musk have distanced themselves from# one another.

But one key flash point that my## colleagues and I are reporting today in The# New York Times is the decision by President## Trump to withdraw the nomination of# Jared Isaacman for -- to run NASA.

He is a close ally of Elon Musk.

And NASA is# one of the most critical agencies for SpaceX,## Elon's space exploration company.

And Elon grew## very upset with the decision by# Trump to withdraw the nomination.

GEOFF BENNETT: Today, though,## neither side seemed to see.. What are you hearing from the White# House about what might come next?

TYLER PAGER: Yes, the White House has made clear## the president is not all that interested# in engaging right now with Elon Musk.

At the same time, as you note, the president# has not continued to attack Musk on social## media.

Both have sort of laid down after# a tit for tat yesterday over the course of## several hours.

That was just remarkable to see# play out in the open, though I can say White## House officials have told me the president is# considering selling the Tesla he bought in March.

And that was done as sort of a# goodwill gesture to Elon Musk,## whose company had faced some backlash from# his association with the Trump administration.

GEOFF BENNETT: And, this morning, we saw that# Tesla still parked on the White House grounds.

Well, after this spat, Tesla shares dropped# by 14 percent.

According to Bloomberg,## Musk's personal net worth dropped $34# billion.

So the president has shown that## he's willing to wield the full power of# his office against his perceived enemies.

What would that look like in# Musk's case?

You mentioned the## relationship between NASA and SpaceX.

What else?

TYLER PAGER: Yes, the president said yesterday# on TRUTH Social, his social media platform,## that maybe the government should consider cutting# all the contracts and tax subsidies that they## give to Elon Musk's companies, that, over the# years Elon Musk's company, particularly SpaceX,## but also Tesla have received billions of# dollars in government contracts and subsidies.

So it would be a significant hit to those# companies if Trump followed through on that## threat.

It seems that he has not continued# to make that threat.

But it shows you## just how intertwined Elon Musk's private# business is with the federal government.

GEOFF BENNETT: Yesterday, Elon Musk# appeared to flirt with impeachment talk,## impeaching President Trump, hinted# at forming a new political party.

Trump allies appear to be closing# ranks around him.

But is there any## long-term political risk here for President Trump?

TYLER PAGER: Yes, President Trump, as my# colleagues reported in this new story,## has been going around telling people in the# last few days that his poll numbers are better## than Elon Musk's, a sign that he is not all that# concerned about Elon Musk's political influence.

But one thing that is important to note is# that Elon Musk is a huge financial backer,## not just of the president, but of the broader# Republican Party.

And Musk had signaled to## Trump aides that he would give $100 million# to groups controlled by pro-Trump allies.## Our understanding, as a few days ago# that money, had not yet been received.

So there is a financial component to this# relationship.

And that is uncertain going forward.

GEOFF BENNETT: Is this more# than just a personal feud,## Tyler?

I mean, does it reveal# a deeper fracture between the## populist right and Silicon Valley or even# within the Republican coalition itself?

TYLER PAGER: Yes, I mean, that# is exactly what Steve Bannon,## one of the president's former top advisers,# told me yesterday when we spoke on the phone.

He has long railed against Elon Musk's role in# the Trump administration and the broader MAGA## movement.

And so I think there is some people that# want to use this as an opportunity to separate## the MAGA movement from some of the billionaires# and yank it back to Bannon's view of populism.

I think it's too early to say whether this# is a permanent fracture or just more of a## personal falling out that maybe recovers in the# coming days.

But there are real repercussions## for the broader Republican Party should Trump# and Musk not repair this relationship.

Elon## Musk has shown that he's willing to use# his fortune and his social media platform## to wield it against critics, whether# that is Democrats or Republicans.

GEOFF BENNETT: In the 30 seconds we have# left, when Steve Bannon says he's pushing## the president to use the Defense Production# Act to seize SpaceX or to investigate Elon## Musk's immigration status to make sure that# his immigration papers were handled properly,## how seriously is that being taken within# the White House, based on your reporting?

TYLER PAGER: I mean, I think it's a# little premature to say that that is## the next step the administration is going to take.

I spoke with numerous White# House officials today who said## the president is not solely focused on# Elon Musk today, rather focused on the## economy and the legislation he's# trying to push through Congress.

But Steve Bannon is an influential# voice in the MAGA movement and has## a relationship with Donald Trump.

So it's# important to keep track of what he's saying.

GEOFF BENNETT: Indeed.

Tyler Pager, thanks, as always.

We appreciate it.

TYLER PAGER: Thanks for having me.