“A star is born — Elon!” Donald Trump shouted early Wednesday morning, giving because of Elon Musk for serving to him win the presidential election.
Whenever you’re a star, they allow you to do it, as Trump as soon as stated, talking of mauling ladies.
Now Trump and Musk, self-styled stars, are a match made in some type of Ebook-of-Revelation residing nightmare. With Trump’s victory, the duo appear to have put themselves safely out of the attain of the legislation.
Over the past months, as Musk, the richest man on this planet, has poured tens of millions into Trump’s marketing campaign by the use of his America PAC, Trump has promised to convey Musk into authorities.
In September, Trump stated he would create a “authorities effectivity fee” for Musk to guide. This process pressure would perform an entire audit of the funds and efficiency of all the federal authorities, with a view to smashing it to smithereens — that’s, “making it extra environment friendly.”
“I’d put [Musk] within the Cupboard, completely, however I don’t understand how he may do this with all of the issues he’s acquired going,” Trump additionally stated. “However he may type of, because the expression goes, seek the advice of with the nation and provide you with some superb concepts.”
“Excellent concepts” that, let’s guess, gained’t precisely harm Musk’s backside line, which is presently set at greater than $285 billion. (Within the hours since Trump’s victory, Musk gained $20 billion.)
For an individual who controls this a lot personal wealth to have a starring position within the U.S. authorities is to open the door to conflicts of curiosity so immense that, if Trump didn’t already pose such an pressing risk to the survival of the republic, it will be all we’d discuss.
For some other businessman, an opportunity to serve his nation would possibly appear to be a good suggestion. However Musk has held huge governmental energy for a very long time — and for years has exerted unholy affect over Washington.
To see only a fragment of what Musk would possibly do throughout a second Trump time period, look to the present state of play. NASA and the Pentagon now depend upon Musk so profoundly that they may barely survive with out SpaceX, which controls U.S. house launches and web satellites. In 2023 alone, Musk’s firms signed $3 billion in contracts with 17 federal businesses, together with the departments of State, Power and Agriculture.
Musk additionally holds a prime secret safety clearance, which supplies him entry to info that might gravely injury nationwide safety if disclosed.
And but Musk has reportedly been conspiring — no different phrase for it, in my estimation — with the leaders of powers extraordinarily hostile to america.
In line with the Wall Road Journal, Musk has had secret conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin since 2022. The conversations reportedly included Putin’s request for a favor for Chinese language chief Xi Jinping: Musk ought to keep away from turning on his Starlink web service for Taiwan.
Taiwan, after all, is a United States ally, albeit an unofficial one. China and Russia are formally not. For anybody at any degree of presidency to scheme with adversaries would virtually actually be actionable. NASA administrator Invoice Nelson has known as for an investigation.
However as a result of this specific schemer is Elon Musk, it’s been palms off. Musk is an expansively free man, telling cable TV viewers about taking ketamine and turning Twitter-now-X, which nonetheless has round 300 million each day customers, into his very personal Pravda — a darkish MAGA propaganda website so influential that Rolling Stone dubbed Musk and X “the most important purveyors of on-line disinformation.”
Within the early hours of election day, Musk shared a video on X that glorified Jan. 6 and flashed QAnon references. IBM, Disney and Coca-Cola used to promote on Twitter; on X, you’re extra prone to see entries from the far-right, pro-Trump Epoch Occasions, a media group affiliated with the Falun Gong non secular motion.
Extra than 20 current federal investigations or opinions have focused Musk’s firms. Some are fueled by issues concerning the security of Tesla automobiles and environmental injury attributable to SpaceX rockets. Tesla has additionally confronted a raft of lawsuits charging racial discrimination and harassment at its crops, union interference and wage theft.
In October, the Washington Publish printed proof that Musk, after coming to Palo Alto on a pupil visa in 1995, overstayed his visa and labored illegally within the U.S. for years. For Musk, who lately echoes Trump’s spitting nativist rage about undocumented immigrants, the publicity of this secret may have meant deportation — and even lack of U.S. citizenship.
At this time, with Trump’s victory, any saber-rattling by federal businesses or immigration watchdogs appears virtually laughable. Deportation? Lack of citizenship? Investigations, even?
Positive, for different immigrants who’ve overstayed a visa. Positive, for Trump’s political enemies.
However completely not for Musk, mega-American, the brightest star in Trump’s ominous firmament.
Virginia Heffernan is a contributing editor at Wired journal. Her publication might be discovered at virginiaheffernan.substack.com.
