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I am sure that by now many of us have seen the video of Elon Musk performing a questionable salute at the recent presidential inauguration. This, alongside many other events surrounding both the general election and Donald Trump’s inauguration, is being called into question. Musk’s increasing involvement in U.S. politics is raising concerns about the intersection of wealth, democracy, and influence.
Elon Musk is the world’s richest man, and his money comes from his companies, Tesla and SpaceX , and some other, lesser known, ventures. Throughout his career, he has had no direct relation to State Politics, but he has always made his political opinions known. So, is politics just a passion of Musk’s?
Elon Musk has been involved in many conflicts, including any one of his three divorces, controversies surrounding video games, legal questions surrounding his purchase of his recently acquired app, X, and numerous disputable statements he has made on social media. Therefore, his previous clashes with Trump—who is also known for frequent conflicts, especially on social media—are not surprising. However, what is surprising is the recent state of Musk and Trump’s relationship.
Over the course of the last decade, Trump and Musk have had some history. In 2016, Musk publicly stated that he did not think Trump was a suitable president for the United States (US). Musk has also made pointed online statements about some of the decisions that Trump has made, such as pulling out of the Paris Agreement and denying climate change .
However, over the past year, Trump and Musk have somehow managed to set aside a decade of tumultuous history and became much closer in the eyes of the public, especially concerning politics in America. Ultimately, this has culminated into what we are seeing today, with Musk being called the “First Buddy”by Trump’s own daughter. Musk is very vocal on his social media site X, where in the past few days he has increasingly been retweeting and commenting on right-wing posts or ideas, showing just how much he supports Trump. And on the 20th January, he reposted a video of him talking about buying Twitter, where he says “ The reason I felt it was important to acquire Twitter was because I could really feel the walls closing in. It was outrageous that they suspended the account of a sitting president. That’s insane.”
We have also seen Musk influencing the most recent US election through giving away money to voters who sign petitions and refer people in swing states. There have been many questions about the legality of this, but ultimately, even though he was exploiting loopholes in the law, a judge ruled that he could do it. Once again showing his support for, and the lengths he would go to in backing, President Trump.
Trump’s brand new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), was firstly suggested by Musk in an X conversation (or ramble depending on who you ask). DOGE is already facing multiple lawsuits since its official creation on Monday. Musk’s input and influence in this new governmental department means that he now has the potential to influence State policy, which makes him even more powerful than he already is.
Interestingly enough, Musk also owns some of the DogeCoin Cryptocurrency (which bears an intriguing resemblance to the name of the new Department of Government of Government Efficiency), and which the value of has been greatly influenced by Musk himself (mainly through tweets/comments/statements on social media). As a businessman, we can assume that Musk just wants to further his companies and investments. But does he need to be this publicly involved in US politics to do this? Especially as he is already the richest man in the world.
Elon Musk has managed to insert himself into, and hold onto, a spotlight position in American Politics. Musk has even used X as a way to try and get involved with UK politics. Musk has attacked Kier Starmer with pointed tweets and has made public comments on Nigel Farage’s ability to lead the Reform party. Should we, in the UK and Europe, be worried that he will try and influence our politics next?
This is by no means an extensive account of Elon Musk’s influence in politics; however, it can provide a useful summary of some of the contradictions in his attitudes, and the political actions that Elon Musk has taken on behalf of Trump. If we are to allow businessmen into the world of politics in such a seemingly impactful and observable way, I think that there should be a limit to their power and influence. Elon Musk has shown us that even without having a career and profound knowledge of politics, his role in society permits him to play a supporting role in shaping the future of one of the world’s most powerful countries. Personally, I believe this should in no way be happening, because if it continues, we may see global politics being shaped by the ever-changing whims of the powerful, rather than the needs and wills of the people.
Image: Elon Musk interviewed by Chris Anderson at TED2017 by TEDConference, 2017 // CC BY-NC 2.0
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