‘He is a truly evil guy’: Elon Musk torn into by Trump’s former Chief of Staff
Elon Musk just made a new political enemy, someone from the very party that he spent a quarter billion dollars to support.
Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon tore into the world’s richest man in a recent interview with an Italian newspaper, calling Musk a “truly evil guy.” Bannon vowed “I will get Elon Musk kicked out by the time he’s inaugurated,” speaking of Donald Trump’s upcoming Inauguration. Bannon is no paragon of morality himself. The former Trump strategist was recently released from prison after having been found guilty of contempt after failing to appear before Congress to testify about the January 6th attacks on the Capitol Building.
Bannon isn’t the only political enemy that Musk has made in his own political party. Musk recently stoked an all out GOP civil war after he announced his unwavering support for the H-1B visa, which grants companies the ability to hire immigrants for specialized labor for a limited time. The tech circles Musk moves in rely heavily on the H-1B visa to court talented international engineers. Musk’s stance on the visa is at odds with views of MAGA’s immigration hardliners who voted for Trump due to his deportation promises. Musk drew further ire from his numerous Republican critics when he responded “F*CK YOURSELF IN THE FACE” in a post on X. According to Bannon, Musk’s response to the H-1B debate showed that he had “the maturity of a child.“
“He won’t have a blue pass with full access to the White House. He’ll be like everyone else.” said Bannon of Musk’s influence on government affairs. Bannon isn’t the only government official who has called to limit Musk’s growing political influence. Federal intelligence agencies are moving to limit the Space X CEO’s security clearance, citing Musk’s history of drug use, ties to foreign dictators, and penchant for posting sensitive information related to his company on X.
The intelligence community aren’t the only ones worried about Musk’s mercurial nature and its effect on politics. Musk provoked anxiety in legislators after he used his political influence to tank a painstaking negotiated bipartisan spending bill to avert government shutdown with a series of tweets. Musk’s meddling led Democrats to label him the “Shadow President,” as Trump and his VP J.D. Vance soon joined in the criticism of the bill, seemingly influenced to do so by Musk.
While the dangers that Musk poses to the nation are myriad, Bannon is chiefly attacking Musk due to his stance on the H-1B visa. “This thing of the H-1B visas, it’s about the entire immigration system is gamed by the tech overlords, they use it to their advantage,” said Bannon in the interview. “The people are furious.” In classic MAGA anti-immigrant fashion, Bannon told reporters that Musk should “go back to South Africa” and criticized his heritage, calling South Africans the “most racist people on Earth.”
Musk’s welcome in the Republican Party is reportedly wearing thin with its highest ranking member: the president-elect himself. According to New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, Trump “does complain a bit to people about how Musk is around a lot.” Since Trump’s victory, Musk has become a near constant presence at Mar-a-Lago, and the billionaire has reportedly been shelling out $2000 a night to stay at a cottage on the resort grounds in an effort to be near the president-elect.
Money can buy many things, but love is not one of them. Musk’s habit of GOP enemy-making may cause his political career to be over before it begins. If Steve Bannon has anything to say about it, it will be.
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