Of Billionaires and Beers: The Trump-Musk Rift from a Barstool

 

It all happened on a Thursday night, the kind where Washington D.C. drapes itself in a hushed intensity, not from policy debates or budget battles, but from the glow of phones lighting up with digital drama.

On social media, Donald Trump and Elon Musk — two of the loudest voices in America’s public square — had locked horns. Musk had gone on a scorched-earth campaign: condemning Trump’s economic policies, hinting at impeachment, and dredging up ghosts from the Epstein saga. Trump, ever the counterpuncher, simply declared: “Elon is going CRAZY.”

Twitter, of course, lost its mind.

But inside Butterworth’s, a swanky MAGA-themed bistro just blocks from Capitol Hill, the scene couldn’t have been more different. Here, the mood was warm, the Guinness cold, and the patrons — political aides, far-right influencers, ex-officials, and True Believers — weren’t doomscrolling. They were laughing.

One man in a red hat raised his glass and smirked. “MAGA will not sell out to ketamine,” he quipped, taking a bite of fries dipped in beef tallow. The comment was as much about Musk’s libertarian strangeness as it was about Trump’s enduring grip on this crowd.

In this room, Elon wasn’t a tech messiah or free speech hero — he was just another rich guy trying to steer a movement that wasn’t his. The people at this bar hadn’t voted for algorithms or electric cars. They’d voted for a man who shouted louder, fought dirtier, and made them feel seen. For better or worse, that man was still Trump.

The deeper irony? Few in that room even seemed angry. If anything, they were amused. They knew Elon was having a moment — a tantrum, perhaps — because power wasn’t flowing his way. “Pride comes before the fall,” said one media figure solemnly, sipping his whiskey as if quoting scripture.

To them, Musk's rebellion wasn’t noble. It was inconvenient. Something that made aides have to Google “ketamine” for their bosses and write yet another memo explaining billionaire infighting.

And so, as Twitter burned, Butterworth’s remained untouched — a political speakeasy insulated by loyalty, ideology, and maybe just a bit of denial.

Because in the end, while billionaires tweet and pundits rage, most revolutions — even MAGA ones — are still fought and forgotten over drinks at the bar.