Steve Bannon doesn't do "quiet." You've likely seen the headlines over the last year—the ones where he calls Elon Musk a "parasitic illegal immigrant" or a "truly evil guy." It’s a lot to process, especially since both men are arguably the most influential figures in Donald Trump’s orbit today. One wants to dismantle the state through a podcast and a populist uprising; the other wants to do it with a chainsaw and a spreadsheet.
The friction is real. It’s also complicated.
🔗 Read more: What Do You Need to Vote in California: Why Most People Get It Wrong
If you think this is just two big egos clashing over who gets to sit closer to the Resolute Desk, you're missing the bigger picture. This isn't just a feud. It’s a fundamental battle for the soul of the MAGA movement.
The Core of the Steve Bannon on Elon Musk Feud
To understand what Steve Bannon on Elon Musk actually looks like, you have to look at their January 2025 blow-up. It was nasty. Bannon, fresh out of his four-month prison stint, didn't exactly come out looking to make friends with the tech elite. He went on a tear, specifically targeting Musk's influence on the incoming administration.
Basically, Bannon sees Musk as a "techno-feudalist."
That’s a fancy way of saying he thinks Musk is an oligarch who only cares about his own companies—Tesla, SpaceX, X—and is using the U.S. government as a personal piggy bank. Bannon told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that he made it his "personal thing" to take Musk down. He even vowed to have him "run out" of the White House by Inauguration Day.
Obviously, that didn't happen. Musk stayed.
But why the hate? It mostly boils down to three things:
- Immigration: Bannon is a hardliner. Musk, who once held an H-1B visa, supports skilled immigration. Bannon thinks this "games the system" for tech overlords.
- China: This is a big one for Bannon. He views the CCP as America's greatest existential threat. Musk has massive business ties in China. To Bannon, that makes Musk "owned" by Beijing.
- The "Oligarch" Factor: Bannon’s brand of populism is built on hating the elites. Musk is the richest man on Earth. It’s a tough circle to square for a guy who tells his audience they are the "deplorables" fighting against the billionaire class.
Why the "DOGE" Drama Matters
Then came the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. At first, Bannon was skeptical. He called Musk "unstable" and demanded a "specific accounting" of every dollar found. He was worried Musk was just vacuuming up government data to feed his own AI models (like Grok).
But then something shifted.
By the time CPAC rolled around in February 2025, Bannon was singing a slightly different tune. He actually praised DOGE for finding $55 billion in waste in its first month. He called Musk an "armor-piercing shell" hitting the administrative state.
It was a classic Bannon pivot. He realized that if Musk is actually going to fire 50,000 bureaucrats, he’s doing Bannon’s work for him. But don't let the temporary truce fool you. By early 2026, the cracks were back.
The 2026 Break: OMB vs. DOGE
We're seeing it right now. Bannon has started pushing for Russ Vought (the White House budget director) to be "let off the chain." In a recent interview with Bloomberg Law, Bannon basically said that where DOGE failed, the OMB (Office of Management and Budget) is the real weapon.
His logic? Musk’s "wrecking-ball" tactics relied on people quitting voluntarily. That pool has dried up. Now, Bannon wants the cold, hard machinery of the federal budget to finish the job. He’s essentially saying the "tech bro" approach reached its limit and it's time for the "nationalist" approach to take over.
The "Rubicon" Moment: Impeachment and Epstein
The feud got personal—and weird—in June 2025. Musk reportedly crossed what Bannon called the "Rubicon."
During a heated debate over a Republican budget bill, Musk went on X and suggested that Trump should be impeached and replaced by JD Vance. He even made some wild comments linking Trump to the Jeffrey Epstein files. Trump, predictably, posted that Musk had "gone CRAZY."
Bannon pounced.
He told KPBS and CBS News that Musk was a "national security issue." He called for a federal investigation into Musk’s drug use, his security clearance, and even his citizenship status. It was a scorched-earth move. Bannon wasn't just criticizing policy anymore; he was trying to get the guy deported or jailed.
What This Means for You
Honestly, if you're trying to figure out where the country is headed, watching the dynamic of Steve Bannon on Elon Musk is more useful than watching any cable news panel.
It represents the two halves of modern conservatism. One half (Bannon) wants a nationalist, protectionist, "America First" country that closes the borders and fights China at all costs. The other half (Musk) wants a libertarian, tech-driven, deregulated future where "efficiency" is the only metric that matters.
They are allies of convenience, but they are ideological enemies.
Actionable Insights: How to Track the Feud
If you want to stay ahead of the curve on this, don't just wait for the next viral tweet. Look for these specific signals:
- H-1B Visa Policy: If the administration expands these visas, Musk won and Bannon will go ballistic on War Room.
- China Tariffs: If Trump goes soft on tariffs to protect Tesla's supply chain, watch for Bannon to label Musk a "CCP agent" again.
- The Vought vs. Musk Power Struggle: Watch who gets the final say on the 2026 and 2027 budgets. If it's the OMB, Bannon’s faction is winning. If it’s DOGE, Musk still holds the keys.
- Security Clearances: Any news about Musk's security clearance being reviewed is a direct sign that Bannon’s "national security" narrative is gaining traction within the DOJ.
The reality is that Steve Bannon and Elon Musk are stuck with each other as long as Trump is in the picture. They both want to tear down the "Deep State," but they have very different ideas about what should be built on the ruins. One wants a mythic nationalist past; the other wants a sci-fi future.
For now, the friction between them is the engine driving most of the drama in Washington. Don't expect it to quiet down anytime soon. These aren't the kind of guys who know how to back away from a fight.