President-elect Donald Trump is threatening to add the 27 countries that make up the European Union to the list of trade partners he'll place tariffs on — unless the group takes steps to import more U.

EU Commission spokesman Olof Gill said in reaction to Trump's post that "we are ready to discuss with President-elect Trump how we can further strengthen an already strong relationship, including by discussing our common interests in the energy sector.

Trump isn't laughing as Musk is taking matters into his own hands, often giving the impression that the SpaceX CEO is really in charge.

Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) on Thursday suggested Elon Musk is the one directing the Trump administration, not President-elect Trump, pointing to the tech entrepreneur’s leading position in opposing the government funding stopgap measure.

Democratic members of Congress are incensed at the outsized power billionaire-turned-Trump lieutenant Elon Musk appears to be exercising over the policymaking process. Why it matters: Musk's fervent public opposition helped scuttle a federal funding deal Democrats were prepared to support en masse – putting the government on the brink of a holiday shutdown.