Politics
Billionaire and X owner Elon Musk initially supported Ron DeSantis for president, although the Florida governor has since dropped out of the Republican primary.
Donald Trump is now the likely GOP nominee, who hasn’t been on X (formerly Twitter) in a while and is actively fundraising after taking a significant financial hit recently on the House floor.
The two were reportedly meeting on Sunday.
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When worlds collide – Elon Musk meets Trump
The Guardian reports: “Donald Trump met with billionaire Elon Musk in Florida over the weekend as the former Republican president seeks a major cash infusion for his re-election campaign, the New York Times reported.”
“According to the Times, Trump met with Musk – one of the richest people in the world – and a number of wealthy Republican donors on Sunday and hopes to soon have a personal discussion with Musk, the CEO of Tesla Inc and SpaceX, and the executive chairman and owner of X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
The story continued:
Trump, whose personal fortune has taken recent hits from rulings against him in a civil fraud case in New York and a separate defamation trial, aims to deploy other major contributors to his presidential campaign, the Times said.
Musk has not said whether he intends to support Trump financially, but the South African billionaire entrepreneur has suggested in social media posts that he is opposed to incumbent Joe Biden – who defeated Trump in 2020 – winning a second term in November.
Musk has long tried to portray himself as politically independent, but previously said he voted for Biden in 2020. Since then, however, he has criticized the president and clashed with his administration.
The Guardian added: “Last year Musk said he would not vote for Biden again and – according to the Times report – made clear that defeating the president is a priority.”
Forbes magazine pegged his net worth at around $200 billion. If he wanted, Elon Musk could give a huge financial advantage to any candidate he wanted, including Trump.
Yet shortly after the two met, and even as some in Musk’s orbit say he is interested in Biden losing, the billionaire said he would not donate to either presidential candidate.
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Despite strong voter support, Trump’s money has dwindled
The Guardian noted: “Financial information presented last month showed Trump’s cash holdings fell to just over $30 million as he successfully ran the Republican primary, down from around $33 million in the month precedent, his campaign said in a report to the Federal Election Commission (FEC).”
Looking at the poll numbers right now, this is Donald Trump’s race to lose.
But money matters. Votes count. Even Elon Musk could be of great importance, if he decides to do so.
Regardless, it’s sure to be a wild ride until November.
