Elon Musk Apologizes to Bricks for Calling Peter Navarro Dumber Than a Sack of Bricks

There's been some infighting in the Trump administration that's been playing out on X. Elon Musk and senior trade adviser Peter Navarro are arguing about tariffs, and Navarro is claiming that Musk isn't a car manufacturer but a car assembler, using parts imported from other nations like Japan and China.

The infighting began last week, when, in a now-deleted post, Musk took on Navarro:

Hahahaha. Hang it in the Louvre. pic.twitter.com/OeQ9QBrXqL
— Bojac (@HeartlessBojac) April 5, 2025

The latest split was inspired by an interview that Navarro gave to CNBC on Monday:

PETER NAVARRO ON ELON MUSK:

“We all understand in the White House (and the American people understand) that Elon's a car manufacturer. But he's not a car manufacturer — He's a car assembler.

In many cases, if you go to his Texas plant, a good part of the engines that he gets… pic.twitter.com/mkp1wRGcvX
— Ron Pragides  (@mrp) April 8, 2025

"… (which in the EV case are the batteries) come from Japan and come from China. The electronics come from Taiwan...
What we want — and the difference is in our thinking and Elon's on this — is that we want the tires made in Akron. We want the transmissions made in Indianapolis. We want the engines made in Flint and Saginaw. And we want the cars manufactured here.”

That post had a Community Note appended:

Readers added context they thought people might want to know
According to cars.com's ranking, the most American-made car is the Tesla Model Y.

Navarro is truly a moron. What he says here is demonstrably false.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2025

Tesla has the most American-made cars. Navarro is dumber than a sack of bricks. @IfindRetards @RealPNavarro https://t.co/gECgtZt5Sc
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 8, 2025

Peter Navarro said something quite revealing on CNBC today about BMW's factory in South Carolina: "That doesn't work for America. It's bad for our economics, it's bad for our national security."

This piqued my interest. I grew up very close to that BMW facility -- the company's… pic.twitter.com/bDrjSzI3TV
— John W Lettieri (@LettieriDC) April 7, 2025

… largest in the world -- and I watched it transform my state and region with more than $13 billion invested in since 1992, 11,000 jobs onsite at an 8 million square foot campus, $10+ billion in exports in 2023 alone, etc. One study put the annual economic impact of the plant at $27 billion. In a small state, these are absolutely game-changing numbers.
For all these reasons, BMW's investment has been hailed as a turning point in the state's economic history. Earlier this year, for example, Gov. Henry McMaster said this: "BMW's arrival in South Carolina over 30 years ago transformed our economy and global reputation." He's right. The investment was instrumental in helping the state transition from a textile-dependent economy for most of the 20th century to one with a vibrant advanced manufacturing industry today.
In light of all this, how in the world does Navarro conclude that BMW's investment "doesn't work for America"? I mean, even trade restrictionists have long praised this kind of inbound foreign direct investment in U.S. auto manufacturing. Not Navarro. He's setting a new bar: whatever benefits BMW has delivered are more than canceled out by the fact that it sources parts from a global supply chain. And this is the vision behind the new tariff agenda.

Everything makes sense once you realize that Navarro is the Jim Cramer of trade.
— Terminus Est (@TerminusEst24) April 7, 2025

A reported brought up Musk's remarks at Tuesday's press briefing with Karoline Leavitt:

REPORTER: "Musk actually referred to Navarro today as, 'dumber than a sack of bricks.'"

KAROLINE LEAVITT: "Boys will be boys & we will let their public sparring continue."

As it should!
pic.twitter.com/K1pAuiioOy
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) April 8, 2025

This feud is nowhere near over. Get your popcorn.

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