Reports surfaced on Sunday that Elon Musk allegedly "body-checked" Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a contentious meeting. 

However, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt played down the incident, describing it as a "robust disagreement," as The New York Post reported.

Leavitt admitted on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" that she wasn't present during the altercation in April.

However, she insisted that, based on what she had heard about the brawl, which allegedly involved Musk slamming into Bessent's rib cage "like a rugby player," she wouldn't describe it as a "fistfight."

From the press secretary

"Elon Musk aggressively body-checked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent," she said. "Did he body-check the Treasury Secretary in the White House?"

According to Leavitt, the whole incident has been dramatized far more than what is appropriate for members of the Trump administration, who have worked well together, despite disagreements.

"Well, look, when this story originally broke, I said from the podium that there have definitely been healthy disagreements amongst the cabinet and Elon Musk," Leavitt replied.

"There were times in which they got frustrated with one another, but I think that really speaks to the heart of this cabinet in the president's team, that they can have these robust disagreements and then still come together to do what's right for the people they are serving."

Recent Posts

The spokesperson then went on to talk about Musk's recent posts to social media site X, formerly Twitter when asked by the host.

"Now, we know that there was real disrespect in a lot of those X posts from Elon Musk, for sure," Bartiromo pointed out. "But did he actually get physical? Was there a fist fight that he body-checked the Treasury Secretary?"

"I certainly wouldn't describe it as a fist fight, Maria," Leavitt insisted. "It was definitely a disagreement... But again, we've moved on from that. The president has moved on from it."

News of the interaction

"War Room" podcast host and former top adviser to President Trump, Steve Bannon, claimed Musk had scrapped with the Treasury secretary two months ago after Musk publicly went nuclear over the bill and Trump from last week.

“Scott said [to Musk], ‘You’re a fraud. You’re a total fraud,’” Bannon told the Washington Post, asserting that Musk then rammed into Bessent’s rib cage “like a rugby player.”

According to Bannon, "President Trump heard about it and said, 'This is too much.'" Several witnesses then stepped in to separate them.

Bannon has openly demanded that South African-born Musk be deported and that the president use the Defense Production Act to take over Musk's SpaceX company as punishment for Musk's public attacks on Trump.