By Former President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk put aside months of public rancor to honor the memory of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk at a memorial service that drew thousands on Sunday.
The two men, once close allies but lately estranged over policy clashes, were spotted in a private box at State Farm Stadium, where they clasped hands in a gesture that spread rapidly across social media, noted Fox Business. Musk later reposted the photo on his platform Twitter with a simple caption: “For Charlie.”
For Charlie pic.twitter.com/8092jIt319
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 21, 2025
Kirk, co-founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed on September 7 while addressing students at Utah Valley University during his “Prove Me Wrong” speaking tour. His death shocked the conservative movement he helped shape and reignited debates over both campus security and the often combustible rhetoric surrounding his appearances.
POTUS x @ElonMusk
For Charlie. pic.twitter.com/Inaf8X81Gy
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 22, 2025
Trump called Kirk a “warrior for freedom” in brief remarks, while Musk lingered to speak quietly with organizers. Erika Kirk, the activist’s widow, delivered a moving eulogy urging supporters to continue her husband’s work.
The handshake capped a turbulent year for Trump and Musk. The billionaire had been one of Trump’s most visible backers during the 2024 campaign, even joining the administration as head of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. He promised to cut trillions in waste and became a regular presence in the Oval Office.
But by summer, the relationship soured. Trump pressed ahead with his sweeping “One Big Beautiful Bill,” a tax-and-spending package Musk blasted as “a disgusting abomination” that would drive the national debt — now above $37 trillion — even higher. Musk resigned from DOGE in May, and by July the bill cleared Congress despite his objections.
Tensions deepened as Trump moved to scale back subsidies for electric vehicles, a decision Musk denounced as a betrayal of Tesla’s growth. Trump admitted publicly that ties with Musk had become “a little bit strange.”
Sunday’s memorial muted those quarrels, at least for a moment. For Trump, now steering through a stormy second term, and Musk, fresh off a Tesla stock rally that pushed shares to $426.07, the loss of a mutual ally provided a reminder that grief can briefly bridge even the sharpest divides.
Whether the reconciliation holds beyond the tributes remains uncertain. But in Glendale, amid a sea of mourners, the image of Trump and Musk standing together underscored the reach of Charlie Kirk’s legacy and it’s just what he would have wanted. CNN writes, “When Elon Musk and President Donald Trump’s feud reached a fever pitch, Charlie Kirk desperately wanted the two to put their fight to bed and make up.
‘I know both these guys … I am hopeful, optimistic and will do everything I possibly can to try and bring this back together,’ Kirk told Megyn Kelly in June, adding that he expected them to make up.
Kirk knew both men and had spent time with them, he would recount on his podcast. And even though Kirk always made it clear that he would stand by Trump during the height of the feud with Musk, he always expressed admiration for the world’s richest man, effusively thanking him for buying what was then Twitter, calling it ‘the most important purchase since the Louisiana purchase.’
‘[K]nowing both of these men and knowing President Trump much better than Elon, but knowing both of these men, I can tell you I think that there’s going to be a peace treaty moment, a calming down, a moment where both sides come together and we know that we are stronger against the left than we are divided,’ Kirk said over the summer.
Andrew Kolvet, executive producer of Kirk’s podcast, posted a photo of the two men together at the memorial, writing: ‘Charlie so badly wanted these two men to come back together. I hope they’re saying to each other, ‘For Charlie.’’
[Read More: Dems Make Gross Comments During Kirk Memorial]
