Ashley Parker

Washington, D.C., United States

I remain skeptical about Twitter. Also: @TheAtlantic staff writer. @MSNBC analyst. And @washingtonpost + @nytimes alum. Email: [email protected].

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Articles

Inside the Trump-Musk Breakup

13 hours ago | theatlantic.com | Jonathan Lemire |Ashley Parker |Michael Scherer |Russell Berman

For once, President Donald Trump was trying to be the adult in the room. Trump and Elon Musk, two billionaires with massive egos and combustible temperaments, had forged an unlikely friendship over the past year, one built on proximity, political expediency, and, yes, a touch of genuine warmth. Relations between the president and his top benefactor had grown somewhat strained in recent weeks, as Trump began to feel that Musk had overstayed his welcome in the West Wing.
The Secret History of Trump’s Private Cellphone

4 days ago | theatlantic.com | Ashley Parker |Michael Scherer

Just before Election Day, a disturbing piece of information made its way to Donald Trump. Whenever he takes or makes calls on his personal cellphone, Trump learned, Chinese hackers could be listening and gathering intelligence. Iranians had already hacked into his campaign’s email system—which was not a problem for Trump personally, because he has never liked putting things in writing—and the Chinese had breached the emails of the Republican National Committee.
Is Trump Falling Out of Love With Putin?

1 week ago | theatlantic.com | Jonathan Lemire |Ashley Parker

Like so many stories about Donald Trump, this one begins with a tweet.
The Decline and Fall of Elon Musk

1 week ago | sueddeutsche.de | Michael Scherer |Ashley Parker

The Tesla innovator becomes the latest government employee to lose his job. First published in The Atlantic on May 21, 2025 by Michael Scherer and Ashley Parker May 29, 2025 | reading time: 13 Min.
Trump: ‘I Run the Country and the World’

2 weeks ago | sueddeutsche.de | Ashley Parker |Michael Scherer

Donald Trump believes he’s invincible. But the cracks are beginning to show. First published in The Atlantic on April 28, 2025 By Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer, The Atlantic May 22, 2025 | reading time: 48 Min.
The Off-Boarding of Elon Musk

2 weeks ago | theatlantic.com | Michael Scherer |Ashley Parker

“Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!”Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was shouting at Elon Musk in the halls of the West Wing last month, loud enough for Donald Trump to hear and in a language that he could certainly understand. Bessent and Musk were fighting over which of them should choose the next IRS leader—and, implicitly, over Musk’s bureaucracy-be-damned crusade. Without securing the Treasury chief’s sign-off, Musk had pushed through his own pick for the job.
Trump’s Cabinet is Cosplaying – The Atlantic - Business And America

3 weeks ago | businessandamerica.com | Ashley Parker

In Donald Trump’s administration, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem rotates through various costumes—firefighting gear for drills with the United States Coast Guard, a cowboy hat and horse for a jaunt with Border Patrol agents in Texas, a bulletproof ICE vest for a dawn raid in New York City. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posts photos of himself doing snowy push-ups with U.S. troops in Poland and deadlifting with them in predawn Germany.
‘I Run the Country and the World’

3 weeks ago | businessandamerica.com | Ashley Parker

This article was featured in the One Story to Read Today newsletter. Sign up for it here. Before we begin, a primer on the science of arranging an interview with a sitting American president:In ordinary times, reporters seeking an on-the-record encounter with the commander in chief first write an elaborate proposal.
Trump’s Kennedy Center Debut: ‘Les Mis’ and Six-Figure Checks

3 weeks ago | businessandamerica.com | Ashley Parker

President Donald Trump’s promised cultural renaissance will begin with misery—specifically, Les Misérables. Trump plans to attend a performance of the musicalat the Kennedy Center next month and host a private fundraising reception beforehand, marking the first performance he will attend at the center as president and his first effort to raise funds for the institution he now runs, two people familiar with the fundraiser told us.
Trump’s Kennedy Center Debut: Les Mis and Six-Figure Checks

1 month ago | theatlantic.com | Ashley Parker |Michael Scherer

President Trump’s promised cultural renaissance will begin with misery—specifically, Les Misérables. Trump plans to attend a showing of the musical at the Kennedy Center next month and host a private fundraising reception beforehand, marking the first performance he will attend at the center as president and his first effort to raise funds for the institution he now runs, two people familiar with the fundraiser told us.