[By Guancha Observer Network, Shao Yun]

The sudden public disagreement between U.S. President Trump and billionaire Musk, apart from the apparent differences over the "large and beautiful" tax reform bill, is also believed to have been triggered by Trump's sudden reversal on allowing Musk's close friend to become the head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). According to U.S. media reports, the key driver behind the replacement of the NASA director nominee was White House senior advisor Sergio Gor. Axios News Network continued to dig into the details on June 6.

On May 31, the day after Musk stepped down from his position at the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE), the White House announced the withdrawal of the nomination for Jared Isaacman, a wealthy American and Musk's good friend and important client, as the next NASA administrator. On June 5, Trump admitted that this matter had upset Musk.

Axios reported on June 6 that some Republican senators in the U.S. Congress believe that it was President Personnel Office Director Gor, who had conflicts with Musk, that sabotaged Isaacman's nomination as revenge against Musk. It is known that Musk had previously criticized Gor's management of the White House Personnel Office.

As early as March this year, The New York Times revealed that Musk and Secretary Rubio had a heated argument over personnel issues during a cabinet meeting, in front of Trump. Although The New York Times did not mention Gor in its report at that time, according to Axios, Gor has always been dissatisfied with Musk's interference in personnel matters.

It is reported that two senior officials in the Trump administration were surprised that the report did not mention Gor. "Gor does not like Musk, and he is not discreet about his attitude toward Musk in public... and he does not like being publicly pointed out by Musk in front of cabinet members," said a White House official present at the meeting.

A photo of Trump and Gor (right) on social media

What is more intriguing is that Isaacman himself stated in a podcast on May 5 that he believes one reason for the cancellation of his NASA administrator nomination is related to Musk's declining status in the White House, and another reason is due to an influential advisor telling Trump, "Listen, the facts are clear, I think we can't use this person."

It is introduced that Gor is one of the most influential advisors in the White House. He is a frequent visitor to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate and was a senior fundraising official for Trump's 2020 campaign team. In 2024, he launched a pro-Trump super political action committee (Super PAC) that raised nearly $72 million.

Gor maintains close ties with many insiders in Trump's circle, such as Ike Perlmutter, former Marvel executive, Trump's close friend, and major financier. Gor also co-founded Winning Team Publishing with Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr. The publishing house publishes books by Trump and his allies, providing much-needed income for Trump during the post-insurrection political isolation period.

Axios reported that as the person responsible for reviewing political appointees, Gor implemented a loyalty screening system to ensure that appointees "fully support" Trump's agenda and have not donated to the Democrats. However, Isaacman stepped on this red line - he had previously donated to Democratic candidates in Pennsylvania, Arizona, and California.

Trump mentioned this point when he announced the withdrawal of Isaacman's nomination. However, according to U.S. media reports, Trump already knew about this issue when he met with Isaacman shortly before taking office in January, and informed several advisors of this fact. Meanwhile, a Trump advisor told Axios that it was Gor who "continuously brought up" the donation issue, thus "stirring up the president's emotions."

According to insiders, on May 30, before Trump held a joint press conference with Musk to "see off" Musk, Gor sent a background file on Isaacman to the presidential office. After Musk arrived, Trump mentioned Isaacman to Musk: "This guy donated to the Democrats." Musk replied: "He is really capable. But yes, he donated to the Democrats."

Gor, however, claimed to the outside world that he was not responsible for Isaacman losing the nomination, and attributed the result to Republican Senators in the Senate, such as Ted Cruz of Texas. Cruz, as the Republican chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, which oversees NASA, was involved in this matter.

However, according to U.S. media reports, although Cruz had disagreements with Isaacman regarding NASA's future development earlier, they have been resolved. It is known that Isaacman, like Musk, wants NASA to focus on colonizing Mars, but Cruz prefers the "Artemis" program aimed at returning to the moon. After learning of Cruz's opposition, Musk called Cruz, and subsequently, Isaacman promised to prioritize the "Artemis" plan.

Cruz told Axios that he originally thought Congress would confirm Isaacman's nomination this week. When asked if he participated in the process to block Isaacman's nomination, Cruz answered: "That is not accurate."

In response to the above report, Gor's side did not comment. White House communications director Steven Cheung issued a written statement saying that Gor "is a crucial member of the team who helped President Trump build an unparalleled government."

This article is an exclusive contribution by the Guancha Observer Network and cannot be reprinted without permission.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7512837090204254747/

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