Supposed Trump post telling Elon Musk to 'stay in your lane' is fabricated | Fact check

The claim: Image shows Trump post telling Musk to ‘stay in your lane’

A Dec. 21 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) includes an image that appears to show a Truth Social post from President-elect Donald Trump.

“Let me clear something up right now: I am the President-elect of the United States,” reads the beginning of the supposed post. “Not Elon Musk. Not anyone else. I know the media – the FAKE NEWS – and even some of you out there keep saying things like ‘Elon’s really running the show,’ but let me tell you – this is MY vision, MY leadership and MY America we’re talking about.”  It goes on to say jokes about Musk being the president-elect are “wrong” and “disrespectful.”

“So, Elon, I’ll say this: thank you for the support, but it’s time for you to stay in your lane,” the statement reads.

The Instagram post received more than 250 likes in four days. Other versions of the claim appeared on Facebook.

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The image is a fabrication. There is no evidence Trump posted any such statement. No such post appears on his Truth Social account.

Claim comes as some lawmakers question Musk's influence on Trump

Musk spent tens of millions of dollars to support Trump’s re-election campaign and was later selected to co-lead the newly-created Department of Government Efficiency alongside Vivek Ramaswamy.

Musk's involvement in Trump’s transition into a second administration has prompted some lawmakers to suggest Musk is the one setting the Republican agenda, as USA TODAY reported.

Trump disputed that notion during a Dec. 22 speech in Phoenix.

“All the different hoaxes, and the new one is, ‘President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk,’” Trump said, according to Politico. “No, no. That’s not happening.”

But there’s no evidence Trump made a statement like the one included in the social media posts.

No such post appears on Trump’s Truth Social account, nor are there reports from legitimate news outlets about him making the comment.

Fact check: No, Elon Musk didn't post 'cool' image of himself behind Oval Office desk

USA TODAY has debunked other fabricated statements involving Musk, including ones that purported to show him saying Trump will “do anything I tell him to do” and threatening punishment against X users who call Trump supporters “weird.”

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Logically Facts and Lead Stories also debunked the claim.

Our fact-check sources

• Trump’s Truth, accessed Dec. 23, Search

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Image of supposed Trump post about Musk is fabricated | Fact check