WASHINGTON ― President-elect Donald Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon said Elon Musk is a "truly evil guy" and vowed to "take this guy down" in an interview that exposed a rift in Trump's orbit over the influence of the world's richest man.

Bannon leveled numerous insults against Trump’s wealthy ally, labelling him “evil” and urging him to return to his native South Africa.

The far-right political strategist promised to remove Musk from Trump's inner circle in a recent interview with the Italian newspaper, Corriere della Sera.