He has emerged as one of Donald Trump’s most outspoken surrogates, but a fellow billionaire has warned Twitter/X CEO Elon Musk to prepare to be let down by the GOP nominee.
Mark Cuban, an enthusiastic supporter of Democrat Kamala Harris, reached out to Musk after the billionaire Tesla founder sent an apocalyptic tweet about the upcoming election. If Trump is not elected, Musk said, “this will be the last election.”
Cuban’s response suggests Musk’s support for the former president is transactional. But don’t expect that support to be appreciated or reciprocated, Cuban warned in a tweet sent late last week.
Very few Americans realize that, if Trump is NOT elected, this will be the last election. Far from being a threat to democracy, he is the only way to save it!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 29, 2024
Let me explain: if even 1 in 20 illegals become citizens per year, something that the Democrats are expediting as fast… https://t.co/u3HBdd5Bv0
Elon, there will come a time when you need something from Donald Trump. You will think you will have earned the right to ask and receive. You have been a loyal, faithful soldier for him. You have supported him politically with 10s of millions of dollars.
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) September 29, 2024
Then, at the point… https://t.co/70dQZFtVQm
“At the point you need him the most,” Cuban said. “You will find out what so many before you have learned, his loyalty is only to himself.”
However, Cuban denied that his comment was related to the political climate in the country.
“Classic case of projection. You’re describing how you think about politics,” one X user replied to Cuban’s post. “What I said has nothing to do with politics,” Cuban asserted.
Musk has indeed gone full MAGA, buying into some of the more toxic far-right conspiracies. He’s touted the Great Replacement Theory, which claims Democratic elites are attempting to lessen white influence by allowing unfettered immigration, and he’s repeatedly suggested that Kamala Harris would end the First Amendment if elected.
Exactly.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 29, 2024
They want to take away freedom of speech! https://t.co/ye8sg4UlFS
Cuban was a Trump supporter back in 2016. Interestingly, as recently as two years ago, Musk fashioned himself a Trump critic, tweeting, “It’s time for Trump to sail into the sunset.”
Both men’s endorsement decisions were likely driven by more than politics.
Cuban, who has enthusiastically endorsed Harris’ economic plan, has expressed interest in leading the Securities and Exchange Commission, which regulates markets and protects investors from misconduct. The Pittsburgh native made his fortune in software, then became a nationally known figure as owner of the Dallas Mavericks and as one of the investors on “Shark Tank.”
“I told her team, put my name in for the SEC, it needs to change,” Cuban said recently on CNBC.
Musk, meanwhile, has championed the creation of a government efficiency commission to crack down on federal spending. He has also mentioned to Trump his interest in overseeing such an agency.
It’s unclear where he’d find the time. Besides running X (formerly known as Twitter), Musk owns Tesla Automotive Company and SpaceX.
