What happened?
Musk strongly opposed Trump's proposed 'One Big Beautiful Bill,' criticizing it for violating principles of cost-saving and being full of waste, leading to an online exchange of fire between the two, marking the official breakdown of their political relationship.
The bill has been criticized for containing a large number of subsidies and military spending, contradicting Musk's achievements in budget cuts during his leadership of DOGE, with Musk publicly accusing Trump of being ungrateful.
The dispute between the two escalated into the cryptocurrency world, giving rise to the meme coin KBBB, which surpassed a market value of 50 million USD in just nine hours, demonstrating the powerful influence of the interplay between political events and internet culture.
Musk falls out with Trump over the 'One Big Beautiful Bill'
Former political allies U.S. President Donald Trump and Elon Musk have officially broken their relationship due to a bill known as the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' (OBBB).
Musk criticized the bill for destroying the reduction plan he promoted during his time in the government efficiency department (DOGE), with both engaging in an online exchange of fire on their respective social media platforms.
This bill, which includes tax revenue and spending adjustments, was described by Musk as a 'dirty monster' and 'full of wasteful spending.' Musk stated that the bill completely contradicts the 180 billion USD savings achieved during his tenure in the DOGE department and called on the public to call Congress members to express their opposition.
DOGE was established as a unit after Trump's election victory, with Musk serving as the first head. During his 129-day tenure, Musk drastically cut several departments, including the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), significantly reducing government budgets, claiming a total cut of 180 billion USD.
Recently, Trump personally expressed his disappointment over Musk's strong criticism of the OBBB bill, hinting that the 'good relationship' between the two may have come to an end. Musk later retaliated on X, stating, 'If it weren't for me, Trump would have lost the election long ago,' and accused Trump of being 'ungrateful.'
Foreign media commented that the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' is nominally an economic stimulus plan but has been criticized for containing a large number of subsidies, local construction, and military spending, being labeled as 'reopening a bottomless pit of waste.' Trump also defended the bill at a joint press conference, implying that Musk's opposition was due to the bill's cancellation of subsidies for the electric vehicle and solar industries, affecting Tesla's interests.
Related meme coins surged
As the controversy escalated, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, accusing Musk of 'going crazy' and threatening: 'The easiest way to save money is to terminate Musk's government subsidies and contracts; I've always been surprised Biden didn't do this at the time.'
In fact, Musk's SpaceX and Tesla, among other companies, have significant contracts and subsidy relationships with the U.S. government. To counter Trump's threats, Musk even announced that SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft would immediately retire from NASA.
As the news broke, Tesla's stock price plummeted 14% within a few hours.
The conflict between Musk and Trump has also had repercussions in the cryptocurrency world, sparking the birth of several meme coins. For example, during Musk's online battle, he shared a promotional poster for the movie 'Kill Bill,' mocking Trump's bill. This post was seen as an inspiration by the crypto community, leading to the creation of the meme coin named 'Kill Big Beautiful Bill (KBBB)' on Pump.fun.
The coin's market value surged to 53.12 million USD in just nine hours, though it later fell by 30% to 36.73 million USD, still attracting a large influx of speculators. One trader invested 91,200 USD and made a profit of 94,200 USD; another spent 4,599 USD and made a profit of up to 59,700 USD.
The KBBB meme coin once again proves the wonderful chemical reaction between internet culture and political events. This storm is far from over, as the fate of the bill, Musk's ambitions, and Trump's next moves will obviously continue to influence the future power dynamics in the United States.
Source: Decrypt, BBC
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