Whoa: Trump threatens Elon Musk as feud explodes - Brian Tyler Cohen

[TexasTowelie]

Transcript:

a major escalation here in the exploding
feud between Trump and Musk amid the
budget bill drama so after Elon Musk
tweeted on Monday night that he would
fund primary opponents to anybody who
would vote for Trump's budget bill and
then threatened to start a new political
party that would ostensibly draw voters
from the GOP trump responded taking to
Choose Social and writing "Elon Musk
knew long before he so strongly endorsed
me for president that I was strongly
against the EV mandate it is ridiculous
and was always a major part of my
campaign electric cars are fine but not
everybody should be forced to own one
elon may get more subsidy than any human
being in history by far and without
subsidies Elon would probably have to
close up shop and head back home to
South Africa no more rocket launches
satellites or electric car production
and our country would save a fortune
perhaps we should have Doge take a good
hard look at this big money to be saved
and now Elon Musk knows exactly what so
many other Americans have felt when
they've been on the receiving end of
threats by the very person Elon helped
gain power and for Musk it's not just
against his business empire but his very
freedom in the United States of America
trump is essentially saying that he's
going to use Doge the Department of
Government Efficiency that Elon himself
ran to investigate and potentially
eliminate the very subsidies that keep
Elon's companies afloat in other words
Trump created a department put Elon Musk
in charge of that department and is now
threatening to use that same department
to destroy Elon's livelihood showing the
extent to which he's not just willing
but proud openly admitting that he'll
weaponize the federal government for his
own partisan political vendettas just in
case you were wondering whether or not
he'd do that kind of thing I think you
just got your answer it's worth
reiterating here that Elon Musk didn't
just endorse Trump the guy literally
bought Twitter for $44 billion dollars
and turned it into Trump's personal
megaphone he hosted Trump's rallies he
spread election conspiracy theories on
Trump's behalf he pumps a quarter of a
billion dollars into getting Trump
elected president and Trump's response
here the moment Elon shows even the
slightest dissent or push back trump
threatens to destroy his entire business
empire and kick him out of the country
altogether and I got to say it sure is
out of character to see Donald J trump
attack somebody who used to be a close
confidant other than Ronald McDaniel
Michael Cohen Gordon Sland Rex Tillerson
Mike Pompeo Kaye Mcanini George
Papadopoulos Christopher Ray and Mike
Pence just to name a few who could have
possibly guessed that he would discard
an otherwise close ally the moment they
lost their political usefulness to him
truly one of life's great mysteries so
if you're wondering why this matters
beyond just billionaire drama it's
because this is exactly how
authoritarians operate they demand
absolute loyalty total feely and the
second somebody steps out of line even
somebody who's helped them gain their
power they get the full authoritarian
treatment today it's Elon Musk tomorrow
could be any business leader any
governor any judge who doesn't tow the
line perfectly just ask Brad Lander and
Alex Padilla and Lam Monica Macyver and
Mayor Baraka and Judge Dugan this wasn't
a bug for Trump it is a feature the same
guy who spent years complaining about
the weaponization of government is doing
it right now in real time and to a
greater extent than we've ever seen
before but here's the thing that's even
more chilling trump is also making not
so subtle threats about Elon's
citizenship status when he says that
Elon should head back home to South
Africa he's not just talking about
business he's talking about a
naturalized American citizen potentially
being forced to leave the country and if
you think that feels like an overreach
for someone like Donald Trump remember
that he's already signed executive
orders trying to end birthright
citizenship and has talked extensively
about mass deportations which he's
carrying out right now even in some
cases like in Los Angeles with the help
of the US military so just like his
threats to use the government to wage
economic warfare on his enemies he's
also putting on full display that he's
willing to use the tools at his
immigration disposal to hurt his enemies
as well frankly I'm unconcerned about
Elon Musk but think about what this
represents more broadly it is all the
proof you need that Donald Trump will
weaponize the government and abuse all
of his powers to harm people who he
either has a personal or political
vendetta against now in terms of the
implications for Elon's business here
Tesla has benefited enormously from
federal EV tax credits and clean energy
subsidies spacex has billions in NASA
contracts and defense department deals
if Donald Trump does follow through on
his threats he could genuinely
Elon's companies which is not to say
that Elon doesn't deserve it because
he's no saint either remember Musk is
trying to frame himself as some fiscal
conservative in all of this but the
reality is that he is just as full of
as Trump is he had full range of
government with Doge and instead of
going after the biggest purveyor of
waste fraud and abuse which would be the
Pentagon failed seven audits in a row he
went after USAD which accounts for all
of 1/ half of 1% of the federal budget
but which was investigating him and
Starlink he went after the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau which is
actually a net positive for American
consumers who've been defrauded by banks
and predatory financial institutions but
would have had oversight onto him and
his ex- payment processor he went after
agencies like the Department of Labor
the National Labor Relations Board the
EPA all agencies that had direct
oversight or regulatory authority over
him and his companies in other words he
had the perfect opportunity to actually
eliminate waste fraud and abuse his
stated mission and instead squander that
opportunity helping himself and his
bottom line the guy is not some champion
for fiscal conservatism he is a greedy
kleptocrat who looked out for literally
one person when he had free reign of
government so it's pretty rich that he
is once again presenting himself as this
white knight when he is exactly the kind
of self-deing fraud that he pretended to
want to curb the reality is that if
Donald Trump is willing to do this to
the richest man in the world somebody
who literally bought him a social media
platform and spent $250 million getting
him elected president what exactly do
you think he's going to do to regular
Americans who dare criticize him what's
he going to do to journalists and
activists and anybody who doesn't show
sufficient loyalty to Dear Leader this
isn't just about Donald Trump's lack of
loyalty or his willingness to bite the
hand that feeds him this is about a
president who views the entire federal
government as his personal weapon to be
used against anybody who crosses him and
if we don't recognize that for the
authoritarian behavior it is we are
going to wake up in a country where
disscent isn't just discouraged it is
criminalized now Elon did write back
responding to a tweet describing Trump's
threats and writing I am literally
saying cut it all now he then responded
to another tweet that said "SpaceX's
revenue is more than NASA's budget and
cutting EV subsidies would actually be
better for Tesla go on Trump pull your
stunt get humiliated and beg Russia to
bring your astronauts back by writing
100 and a laughing emoji." Which means
that Trump is probably going to respond
to Elon and this feud is going to erupt
even further but it's important for all
of us to remember here that for as
corrupt and abusive as Trump is being
that the reason this was made possible
in the first place is because of the
target of Trump's eye no one's hands are
clean here and no matter what happens
both of these people both Trump and Elon
are to blame.

[ancianita]

1. I'm with Bernie. Oligarchy is the bane of the planet. These two are proof.

[gordianot]

2. My dream is at some point Trump will call for Musks deportation.

The mere sight of these two on a screen raise my blood pressure