Elon Musk and Donald Trump have never been subtle people, both individually and as allies. So when the world’s richest man posted a dinner snap with the U.S. president and first lady Melania Trump, the internet had one question: how did this happen?
The post was captioned, “2026 is going to be amazing!”
The image was shared on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, showing Musk seated at a Mar-a-Lago table with Trump and Melania. If you remember, it hasn’t even been a whole year since Elon Musk and Donald Trump were at each other’s throats in one of the loudest billionaire-president fallouts in recent memory.
Check out the viral post here:
Had a lovely dinner last night with @POTUS and @FLOTUS.
2026 is going to be amazing! pic.twitter.com/1Oq35b1PEC
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 4, 2026
Let’s rewind to 2025, shall we? Elon Musk stepped down as head of DOGE. The Tesla and SpaceX cofounder had ruptured his alliance with Trump over the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill.” Musk had said it was a “disgusting abomination,” while he even floated launching a new political party.
Trump then threatened to yank federal subsidies tied to Musk’s companies.
Things got uglier when Elon Musk shared (and later deleted) a post claiming that Trump was in the Epstein files. While Trump has not been accused of any crimes related to Jeffrey Epstein, this feud looked like a lost cause. Yet now in January 2026, Musk is dining with the Trumps at Mar-a-Lago as Donald Trump oversaw meetings linked to a U.S. military operation in Venezuela, which captured its President Nicolás Maduro. It’s not a low-stakes moment to be seen with the president, is it?
Social media noticed as the Lincoln Project account asked whether Trump was “not in the Epstein files anymore” by tagging Musk. Democrat creator Harry Sisson argued that Musk dining with someone he had once accused showed a complete lack of principles. Even Larry the Cat (the UK prime minister’s pet) mocked: “There’s a good boy.”
Epidemiologist Eric Feigl-Ding said business must be desperate for them to come to this.
— Mr Commonsense (@fopminui) January 4, 2026
Nevertheless, the two men have been reorbiting each other for months. They talked at conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral in September. Elon Musk also attended a White House dinner in November with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and thanked Trump, too. Each of these encounters softened what we thought was a permanent split.
So why did these two powerful men decide it’s better to talk than tweet? It’s worth noting that the U.S. midterm elections are looming, and Musk’s political ambitions are unfilled. This latest chapter suggests a possible reset.
