Elon Musk called Trump before conveying his ‘regret’ for some of his posts about him, sources say
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(WASHINGTON) — Elon Musk called President Donald Trump on Monday night, two sources familiar with the conversation told ABC News, after their bitter public feud last week.
Musk posted on X early Wednesday morning, “I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far.”
Musk, however, did not not clarify which posts he was referring to in his statement. The posts included slamming Trump for “ingratitude” over the 2024 election, agreeing with a call for Trump’s impeachment, knocking the president’s “big, beautiful bill” signature legislation, and even claiming Trump was in the Jeffrey Epstein files.
Musk’s call with Trump came after Vice President JD Vance and White House chief of staff Susie Wiles spoke with the billionaire late last week and urged him to end the feud, sources familiar with the call told ABC News.
The president had previously told Vance to speak diplomatically when asked about Musk publicly, according to a White House official.
The White House declined to comment.
In her press briefing on Wednesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt would not comment on whether the relationship would be reconciled.
“The president acknowledged the statement that Elon put out this morning and he is appreciative of it. And we are continuing to focus on the business of the American people,” Leavitt said.
Last Friday, Trump told ABC News Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl that Musk was a “man who has lost his mind.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(WASHINGTON) — Former Vice President Kamala Harris will not run for California governor in 2026, after months of considering the prospect of being the chief executive of her home state.
“In recent months, I have given serious thought to asking the people of California for the privilege to serve as their Governor. I love this state, its people, and its promise. It is my home. But after deep reflection, I’ve decided that I will not run for Governor in this election,” she said in a statement released Wednesday.
The decision could give Harris greater leeway for a presidential run in 2028, an option she has yet to rule out. Harris said she would share “more details in the months ahead” about her plans.
“I have extraordinary admiration and respect for those who dedicate their lives to public service—service to their communities and to our nation. At the same time, we must recognize that our politics, our government, and our institutions have too often failed the American people, culminating in this moment of crisis,” Harris said. “As we look ahead, we must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking — committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.”
Harris announced this decision after months of reflecting how to best contribute to the Democratic Party after her presidential election loss, she said.
“I am a devout public servant, and from the earliest days of my career, I have believed that the best way I could make a difference in people’s lives and fight for a better future was to improve the system from within. And it has been a profound honor to do that work and serve the people of California and our nation — as a prosecutor, Attorney General, United States Senator, and Vice President,” said Harris.
Over the past several months Harris has waded back into politics, appearing virtually at a young voters summit earlier this month and an abortion rights advocacy group in June. Her joint fundraising committee with the Democratic National Committee, the Harris Victory Fund, has begun fundraising on behalf of former North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s new Senate bid as well.
Harris said despite not running for governor, she was finding other ways to “remain in that fight” for “freedom, opportunity, fairness, and the dignity of all.”
“I look forward to getting back out and listening to the American people, helping elect Democrats across the nation who will fight fearlessly, and sharing more details in the months ahead about my own plans,” Harris said.
(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., sent a letter to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche Monday morning seeking a public commitment that the DOJ will not advocate for a pardon or commutation for Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell in exchange for her cooperation.
The letter comes after Blanche met with Maxwell privately for nine hours over two days last week, and after ABC News first reported that Maxwell was granted limited immunity during her meetings with Blanche.
In the letter, the senators call the “purpose and timing” of Blanche’s meeting with Maxwell “perplexing.”
“It is highly unusual, if not unprecedented, for the Deputy Attorney General to conduct such an interview, rather than line prosecutors who are familiar with the details of the case and can more readily determine if the witness is lying. In light of troves of corroborating evidence collected through multiple investigations, a federal jury conviction, and Ms. Maxwell’s history and willingness to lie under oath, as it relates to her dealings with Jeffrey Epstein, why would DOJ depart from long-standing precedent and now seek her cooperation?” Durbin and Whitehouse wrote.
The letter is a follow up to a letter Durbin wrote earlier this month to Attorney General Pam Bondi inquiring about alleged discrepancies in Bondi’s public comments about Epstein.
Blanche’s meeting, the senators allege, appears to be an effort to distract from Bondi’s past comments.
“It seems likely this meeting is another tactic to distract from DOJ’s failure to fulfill Attorney General Bondi’s commitment that the American people would see “the full Epstein files,” especially in light of credible reports that FBI officials were told to “flag” any Epstein files in which President Trump was mentioned and that Attorney General Bondi told the President that his name appeared in the files,” the senators wrote.
The lawmakers cite Maxwell’s “documented record of lying and her desire to secure early release” as cause or concern that she “may provide false information or selectively withhold information in return for a pardon or sentence commutation.”
When asked Monday if he would rule out a pardon for Maxwell, Trump responded by saying he has the power to give her a pardon but that he has not been asked about it yet.
“Well, I’m allowed to give her a pardon, but nobody’s approached me with it. Nobody’s asked me about it,” Trump said.
Trump told reporters on Friday that it was “inappropriate” to discuss a pardon then.
In addition to commitments to not advocate for a pardon or commutation for Maxwell, the senators also asked Blanche to commit that the DOJ will provide transparency to the victims and survivors of Epstein and Maxwell with respect to decisions the department makes regarding Maxwell’s appeal to the Supreme Court, which seeks to overturn her conviction.
And they called for a release of the Epstein files.
“Rather than engaging in this elaborate ruse, DOJ should simply release the Epstein files, as Attorney General Bondi promised to do,” they write.
The senators posed a list of questions to Blanche, seeking an explanation for why Blanche believes Maxwell would now be truthful and asking what information the department believes she has that was not learned during her prosecution.
(WASHINGTON) — The Trump administration is threatening all of Harvard University‘s federal funding after it said it found the university to be in “violent violation” of the Civil Rights Act, according to a new letter sent to the university that was viewed by ABC News.
The letter, sent to Harvard’s President Alan Garber on Monday, detailed the findings of an investigation into antisemitism on the campus by the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. The letter said the investigation found that Harvard is in violation of Title VI, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color or national origin.
In response, Harvard once again condemned the Trump administration’s threats to strip it of federal funds and defended its work to combat alleged antisemitism.
“Harvard is far from indifferent on this issue and strongly disagrees with the government’s findings,” a Harvard spokesperson wrote in a statement to ABC News.
“Harvard has made significant strides to combat bigotry, hate and bias. We are not alone in confronting this challenge and recognize that this work is ongoing. We remain committed to ensuring members of our Jewish and Israeli community are embraced, respected, and can thrive at Harvard,” the statement added.
The federal government’s joint task force to combat antisemitism’s monthslong review into Harvard’s practices and policies has been focused on keeping Jewish students safe on campus, according to Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
According to the letter, the investigation found evidence that Jewish and Israeli students reported assaults and concealed their Jewish identities on campus, as well as found that demonstrations and encampments on the university’s campus were not properly punished.
The letter added that Harvard was found to be “in some cases deliberately indifferent” to and in other cases “a willful participant” in the harassment of Jewish students.
“Failure to institute adequate changes immediately will result in the loss of all federal financial resources and continue to affect Harvard’s relationship with the federal government,” the letter said. “Harvard may of course continue to operate free of federal privileges, and perhaps such an opportunity will spur a commitment to excellence that will help Harvard thrive once again.”
McMahon said in a statement Monday on X that she worries Harvard’s “persistent indifference” to combating antisemitism isn’t conducive to a safe environment for all students and applauded the administration’s efforts to root out alleged discrimination.
“The Trump Administration’s work to restore equal enforcement of civil rights on American campuses continues,” McMahon said in the post, which also shared the letter sent to Harvard.
This is the latest in a campaign of targeted moves from the Trump administration against the university. The Trump administration has already frozen more than $2 billion in grants to Harvard, threatened to rescind its tax-exempt status and gone after the university’s ability to enroll foreign students. Earlier this month, Trump said that it was “very possible” that a “deal” with Harvard University would be announced in the coming days, although no such deal seems to have happened.
McMahon has suggested frozen federal funding could be restored through ongoing negotiations between impacted schools and the administration.
“It would be my goal that if universities, colleges and universities, are abiding by the laws of the United States and doing what we are expecting of them that they can expect to have taxpayer-funded programs,” McMahon said during a Bloomberg Fireside Chat earlier this month.
ABC News’ Arthur Jones contributed to this report.
