Trump adviser Steve Bannon (left) watches as President Donald Trump greets Ilona Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, before a forum on policy and strategy with executives at the White House public canteen on February 3, 2017 in Washington, DC.
Brendan Smelovsky AFP | Getty Images
Elon Musk twice said this week that he plans to vote for Republicans in the upcoming election, even though he says he has previously voted for Democrats such as former President Barack Obama.
Mask’s political affiliations will not surprise people who follow the interactions and statements of the CEO of the celebrity on Twitter and elsewhere.
Behind the scenes, Musk and his largest companies, SpaceX and Tesla, have worked for years to influence the U.S. political landscape through lobbying and political donations. Together, SpaceX and Tesla have spent more than $ 2 million on lobbying in 2021. They tend to spend on both sides of the aisle.
But Musk has historically been against unions, opposed the billionaire tax and is a vocal critic of President Biden.
Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, said in a September interview with CNBC that Musk had approved his Red State social policy, which included severe restrictions on abortion, a ban on books calling for the removal of LGBTQ memoirs from school curricula or libraries, and also investigates abuses in families caring for transgender children.
On Wednesday, Musk wrote on Twitter:
“In the past, I voted for the Democrats because they were (mostly) a party of kindness. But they have become a party of division and hatred, so I can no longer support them and will vote for the Republicans. Now look at their nasty campaign against me, turn around … “, adding smilies with popcorn to emphasize.
The tweet followed earlier statements at the All In Summit in Miami on Monday, where Elon Musk accused Twitter of a strong left-leaning, saying during a podcast recording: “I would consider myself a moderate, neither Republican nor Democrat. in fact, historically I have voted overwhelmingly for Democrats. In the vast majority. Maybe I never voted for Republicans. Now, this election? I will. “
Musk described his expected $ 44 billion acquisition of Twitter as a “moderate takeover” of the platform, not the right. But then he started smashing the Democratic Party.
Encouraged by podcast and host Jason Kalakanis, who is raising funds to help Mask acquire Twitter, Tesla’s CEO said: “The Democratic Party is overly controlled by unions and litigation lawyers, especially collective redress lawyers.”
On the social platform, Musk often insulted and talked to elected Democrats, including President Joe Biden, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden, as well as MPs. Alexandria Acacio-Cortes.
On the contrary, he tends to have a friendly and non-confrontational manner with right-wing elected officials, such as Lauren Bobert and far-right individuals including Stephen Crowder, Dinesh D’Souza and others.
He also said he would reinstate former President Donald Trump on Twitter.
Twitter permanently dismissed Trump from the platform in January 2021 after an attack by his supporters on the U.S. Capitol. The company said it made the decision after the January 6 riots “due to the risk of further incitement to violence.”
