Elon Musk dominated the news agenda on Friday as he bid farewell to the White House in a joint Oval Office appearance alongside Donald Trump.
But it was the billionaire’s black eye that caught the attention of many viewers and ignited a frenzy of speculation about how he got the shiner.
Musk brushed off the injury, blaming it on roughhousing with his four-year-old son X.
But internet sleuths were quick to cast aspersions elsewhere, making the wild suggestion that Stephen Miller, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff, gave Musk the bruise.
It comes after Miller’s wife Katie announced her departure from the Trump administration to work for Musk full-time.
Social media commenters pointed to the fact that the shiner was on Musk’s right eye and Miller is left-handed, claiming that this would correlate with the Trump aide throwing a left hand at the Tesla founder.
Adding to the intrigue, Miller this week took to X to claim that the Big Beautiful Bill was going to ‘reduce the deficit’ after Musk criticized Trump’s flagship spending legislation in a major public break with the administration.
The bill is set to add $3 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years, according to the nonpartisan think-tank, the Tax Foundation.
Elon Musk ‘s dramatic appearance at the White House on Friday, sporting a visible black eye, has ignited a frenzy of speculation as to how it may have occurred
One commenter posted on X: ‘Yoo did Elon Musk get straight up punched in the face? That’s a left hook black eye if I’ve ever seen one. Might explain his delayed talk?’
One particularly incendiary post on X fanned the flames further. ‘This is a black eye delivered by someone who can’t throw a punch,’ the user wrote, suggesting it could be Stephen Miller who was responsible.
Other comments claimed that Miller was particularly upset because his wife had now left her role within the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to go and work for Musk.
Democrats, usually starved for headlines these days, were quick to pile on.
The official X account of the Democratic Party posted a picture of an empty hotel chair tagged simply with Miller’s handle in a cheeky nod to the latest rumor gripping Washington.
According to multiple reports, Miller, a senior DOGE adviser and spokeswoman, is exiting the Trump administration alongside Musk and will reportedly join his growing business empire full-time.
Her next role remains unconfirmed, but insiders say she is expected to work closely on Musk’s federal policy initiatives and technology projects.
Adding even more fuel, Miller was spotted in the Oval Office on Friday, standing silently by as Musk delivered farewell remarks.
Trump grinned broadly as he awarded Musk a ceremonial ‘Key to the White House,’ similar to one he had previously given to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
‘This is not the end of DOGE,’ Musk promised during his sendoff. ‘Only the beginning. The DOGE team will only grow stronger over time.’
Miller, as White House Deputy Chief of Staff and one of Trump’s most loyal allies, has reportedly been privately fuming.
Sources close to the matter suggest Miller is ‘deeply displeased’ with Musk’s recent public criticisms of Trump’s massive One Big Beautiful Bill.
In a CBS News interview earlier this week, Musk slammed the bill as ‘disappointing’ and claimed it ‘undermines the work of DOGE and balloons the deficit.’
Miller fired back on X, arguing that Senate rules made it impossible to cut discretionary spending significantly and accusing the Congressional Budget Office of using ‘accounting gimmicks’ to inflate deficit projections.
While Miller praised DOGE’s efforts in a separate post, insiders say his frustration with Musk has only grown, especially now that his wife is to work for Musk full-time.
Others close to the Millers insist that Katie’s move is strictly professional, noting that both she and her husband have long had close ties to Musk’s initiatives.
Before joining DOGE, both Millers worked in the Trump administration’s first term, where they met and eventually married.
Katie Miller, who has not publicly commented on her departure, has been active on X reposting updates about Musk’s companies and ventures – a move some see as a clear signal of her next professional chapter.
It’s not the first time Musk has allegedly been involved in a West Wing fracas after former Chief Strategist Steve Bannon told DailyMail.com that there was an incident when he physically ‘shoved’ 62-year-old Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent after he was confronted over wild promises to save the administration ‘a trillion dollars’.
‘Scott Bessent called him out and said, ‘You promised us a trillion dollars (in cuts), and now you’re at like $100 billion, and nobody can find anything, what are you doing?” the prominent MAGA figure revealed.
‘And that’s when Elon got physical. It’s a sore subject with him. It wasn’t an argument, it was a physical confrontation. Elon basically shoved him.’
The black eye came just as Stephen Miller’s wife, Katie Miller, announced her departure from the Trump administration. Miller is pictured outside the White House on Friday
There was a flurry of speculation on social media as to how Elon Musk may have received his black eye
Democrats, usually starved for headlines these days, were quick to pile on with some humor of their own
Musk appeared subdued, trading his usual swagger for a quiet exit marked by whispers of tension and a cloud of rumors
The Deputy White House Chief of Staff for policy is married to Katie Miller, right, who left the administration when her boss, Elon Musk, departed this week
Musk called Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act a ‘disappointment’ because it ‘undermined’ the work he did at DOGE. The same day, Stephen Miller posted the above tweet to X
Miller, as White House Deputy Chief of Staff and one of Trump’s most loyal allies, has reportedly been privately fuming
Katie Miller served as an adviser and the spokeswoman for the Department of Government Efficiency – and is following Elon Musk from the White House to the private sector
