Tech titan and former special government employee Elon Musk vowed to start a third party to challenge his old boss, President Donald Trump, but insiders tell the Daily Caller that Musk’s plans have faded almost as quickly as they were conceived.

So it is with the break-up between Mr Trump and Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and until last week a “special government employee". A few months ago Mr Musk posted on X, his social-media platform,

The comments come as the Trump admin debates how far it can go to exert control over cities struggling with crime and political infighting.