Steve Bannon has vowed that Elon Musk will be kicked out of Trump’s orbit before Inauguration Day.

Steve Bannon recently called Elon Musk a “truly evil person” with no real ideology other than accumulating and protecting his wealth in the latest article in his “The Worst Man You Know Just Made a Perfect Point.” Bannon, speaking to the Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera he said “It became a personal matter for me to stop him,” insisting that Musk be removed from Trump’s inner circle by Inauguration Day.

Bannon is, to be as generous as possible, a racist, misogynist, anti-democratic piece of shit, and has failed at almost everything he’s ever done (except for putting Trump in office, which to be fair is a pretty big one in the win column there). But he’s got a pretty smart read on Musk — maybe no one can see a charlatan like another charlatan — so let him cook for a minute.

in the year interviewBannon claims that the only reason Musk is friends with Trump is to protect the piles of money. “He will do anything to make sure any of his companies are protected or get a better deal or make more money,” Bannon said. “His combination of wealth and then – through wealth – power: that’s what he focuses on.” He argued that Musk had no ideological stance, but that his “only goal” was to “become a trillionaire” and called him a supporter of “techno-feudalism on a global scale.” He said he expected Musk to back down easily, saying, “He’s not going to fight. He has the maturity of a little boy.”

Bannon and Musk are headed for a head-to-head clash as they push for a second Trump administration start date. Musk, who now serves in the Hangman role once held by Bannon, is still building a “Department of Government Efficiency,” according to a new report. Report from the New York Times. While Musk likes to pretend DOGE is already a real agency on Twitter, giving it a gray “government” approved checkmark and all, the group appears to be in Signal conversations with Silicon Valley elites.

Musk is reportedly asking tech executives who have expressed interest in getting their hands dirty in government for six months of unpaid, 80-hour-a-week work — essentially the ideal arrangement for anyone in Musk’s line of work. Those willing to do so (the “unpaid” part was a non-starter for most, according to the NYT) would be inducted into an agency and tasked with making recommendations to improve operations and cut costs.

What the actual DOGE will look like remains to be seen. Trump has said he will continue to create the group, though it will toothless-can give recommendations, but little else. And the latest gossip in Trump world is that the president-elect is fed up with Musk’s meanderings. Kara appears on Swisher’s podcastNew York Times reporter Maggie Haberman recently said that “Musk is more willing to annoy Trump than many others think and less worried about what that might mean,” describing their partnership as a “relationship full of potential.” to be even more so.”

If Bannon wants to push Musk out the window, it looks like Musk is going to stick his head out the window. But it’s hard to predict where Trump will let his loyalty slip. Bannon has already struck a blow in the MAGA civil war. during H-1B visa argument Bannon sat on the other side as Musk and the techno-brothers championed the tool to attract skilled immigrants. argues “The whole immigration system is being gamed by the tech lords.” (His real objection comes from him The racist belief that there are more Asians in the technology industry and that undermines “civil society”. (but Bannon manages to shift positions to try to meet for a moment.)

Musk won this battle with Trump Siding with musk and he has always been in favor of encouraging talent to come to America. But the reality is that Musk’s usefulness to Trump may be over. He happily took the cash as Musk threw his full weight behind Trump’s candidacy, but it’s unclear whether Musk can continue to prove himself more useful than annoying in the Oval Office. Bannon may be on the sidelines now, but he has a reality cockroach-like survival ability. The real shame is that one of them has to win. Either way, the rest of us lose.